iStow Away
by luna moody
Summary: With Carly off with her Grandma, and Spencer, Granddad and Freddie on a guys weekend away, Sam is forced to stay in Seattle by herself... until she finds a way to tag along with the boys, that is. Inspired by a classic bedtime story. *SEDDIE* Finished
1. The Escape

**Woot Woot! My First iCarly Multi-Chapter extravaganza! It's loosely based off of a classic children's bedtime story. Virtual cookies to the first person who can figure it out. (AW heck, it's hot, let's make it a virtual sundae. There's no calories anyway!) This story is fully written, so you won't have to wait through writer's block to get to the end of this story, no sireebob! (been there, done that already). I should be able to update every few days...unless I get kidnapped by Aliens and taken to create a new universal race, or something. **

**Soo...anything else you need to know? Oh, Only that iCarly is owned by Nickelodeon and created by Dan Schneider, who rocks! (Go Danwarp). I neither own iCarly, or rock. Harumph (hangs head sadly and walks away) I'm going back to bed! Oh, Wait! (runs back onto screen) These stunts are performed by professional fictional characters...please do not try this at home. Thank you, and enjoy the show...I mean story...yeah, whatever, just read it.**

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"Spencer!" Carly shouted for her brother as she hung up the phone.

Spencer slowly came out of his bedroom. He was dressed in a khaki vest, floppy hat and was hopelessly trying to untangle himself from fishing line and two fishing poles.

"That was Granddad." She said as she gathered her bags. "They'll be here in five minutes. Do you have all your stuff ready?" She finally looked up to see that the line was wrapped completely around his torso and partially over his face.

"Most of it, except for…" He was still trying to free himself from the line but only succeeded in getting more pinned by them. "OH, COME ON!" He yelled in frustration.

Carly shook her head and headed for the door. "Sam, will you help Spencer while I go get Freddie?"

Sam got up from where she was sulking on the sofa. Without a word she grabbed a pair of scissors from the table, walked over to Spencer and snipped a line from each of the poles. She then gathered all the line that was wrapped around him, snipped through the bundle in one hard squeeze, and then opened her hand to let them gently fall to the floor. She looked up at Spencer, handed him the scissors then returned to the sofa and her sulking.

"Uh, Thanks," he said, embarrassed and somewhat relieved.

Spencer went back to pulling his gear into the living room. With each trip back and forth he noticed that Sam was not moving. She just sat there in her deflated position. He finally sat down next to her and mimicked her sour expression.

"You know you've been like this since yesterday."

Sam slowly turned her head and glared at him. Spencer grew more uncomfortable the longer she looked at him, and he slowly started to back away. He had just returned to packing when Carly came in. Freddie and Mrs. Benson were arguing behind her.

"Spencer, maybe you can talk to her," Carly pleaded.

He was just about to open his mouth, but Freddie seemed to be handling this argument well enough on his own.

They could tell that Freddie was trying very hard not to yell at his mom, but he was quickly loosing his cool. "Mom, Please! I am _surrounded_ by girls every day! If it's not you, then it's Carly and Sam."

"Girls?" Carly's tone seemed a bit offended.

"Sorry, Ladies," he corrected.

"I appreciate all the female influence in my life, but if I don't get some Guy Time soon, _I'll_ probably start wearing a bra and going to teen chick movies!"

Sam spit out her tea and burst out laughing. "I'd sooo pay to see that!"

Freddie quickly narrowed his eyes to indicate 'not now'. He turned to face his mother and spoke in a very strong and calm voice. "Mom, I need this. Please let me go." Mrs. Benson was suddenly aware that she was no longer looking down on her boy, but at eye level into the eyes of her young man. She wondered '_when did he grow up_?'

"Fine, but I want to meet Carly's Grandfather, first."

Freddie was about to argue, but then realized she just agreed. "Absolutely, thanks Mom!" He leaned over and kissed her cheek. "Let's go get my stuff."

"Well, that's just great!" Sam grumbled as she walked into the kitchen to pour herself more tea. "He was my last hope of any kind of _normal_ weekend."

The Bensons walked out just as Carly's Grandparents came up the elevator. "Carly, Spencer!" Mr. Shay's voice boomed through the apartment sending Sam into an even worse mood. She stood back and watched as they all traded long awaited hugs.

Mrs. Shay pulled Carly into a giant hug. "Carly, I've been waiting to spend time with you for so long; just you and me at the spa. I'll tell you, I need to be with someone sweet and relaxing after being stuck with this grumpy old man so long!" Carly's grandmother pointed at the Granddad.

"Well, you go ahead and smear your goop all over your face or whatever it is you do. While you two are being all prissy and girly we will be, coasting the waves, catching our food, breathing in the great outdoors and doing this!" Mr. Shay started to lift his shirt, but Mrs. Shay stopped him.

"Not the Belly Rub!" She held her fingers out in a cross

Mr. Shay put his shirt down. "What's the matter, can't stand all that sexiness?" he wiggled his eyebrows.

"Can't stand something, but sexy wasn't what I was thinking." Mrs. Shay pretended to throw up, and Carly laughed hysterically as Mr. Shay pouted and pulled his shirt down.

Mr. Shay slapped Spencer on the shoulder. "Anyway, we burly men will be fighting through the kelp beds to get to the big fish. The only seaweed you'll see will be wrapped around sushi!" Mr. Shay announced. "Or you!" Spencer added.

Carly and her Grandmother looked at each other and burst out laughing. "Burly? Please, Sam's stronger than you!"

Spencer looked over at Sam then whispered to his Granddad. "You know, I think she might be."

Sam laughed at how the older Shay's playfully bickered back and forth with each other. It kind of seemed comfortable to her; somehow familiar.

"Well," Mr. Shay clapped. "We gonna stand around here all day or are we gonna go out and have us some fun? Carly do you have your bags ready?"

"Right here!" She reached for her yellow polka dotted case.

Spencer grabbed the keys from the counter. "Let's get this downstairs in the car then we can transfer Granddad's stuff to the SUV I borrowed from Socko."

As they all got onto the elevator, Carly caught a glimpse of Sam's sad expression. She handed her suitcase to Spencer, "Hey, I'll meet you downstairs. I just want to say bye to Sam." She let the elevator doors close before she faced her friend.

"Don't give me that look, Sam!" Carly scolded.

"I can't help it, you're all leaving me." She was still pouting.

"Oh, come on. I haven't spent time with my grandma in ages. I promised."

"I know, I know." Sam grumbled as she reached out to hug Carly. "Well kid, it's been nice knowing you!"

"Sam, we're only going to be gone for two days." Carly sighed.

"Yeah, but two days alone with my mom? I'm pretty sure one of us won't survive. Either way I probably won't be here when you get back."

"Whoa! Overdramatic much?" Carly cocked her eyebrow.

They both turned as Freddie and Mrs. Benson walked in the door. Freddie was carrying a medium sized duffle bag, a practical enough size for a weekend away. Mrs. Benson, however, was rolling her monster sized first aid kit behind her. Carly shook her head. "I'm surprised there's not an actual doctor in that thing."

"There's nothing that they can get that can't be helped by something in this case," Mrs. Benson said with pride.

"Yeah, except maybe a hernia," Sam joked. Even Freddie laughed at that one.

"Laugh if you will, young lady," Mrs. Benson shook her finger at Sam. "But a scrape or a poke, is never a joke. This kit and the instructions I'll leave with your Grandfather, Carly, will make me feel much better about my Freddie…" She began to wail, "…leaving without me!" Mrs. Benson threw her arms around Freddie's neck and squeezed so hard, his face was tuning red.

"Mom!" Freddie yelled over her sobbing. "It's just the weekend and it's only three hours away."

"Mrs. Benson" Carly interrupted, trying to pull the woman off of Freddie. "My Granddad is downstairs. You said you wanted to meet him."

"Right. Of course." Mrs. Benson wiped her eyes and straightened her coat.

Freddie left the bags with the rest of Spencer's stuff and headed for the elevator. Carly gave Sam one more quick hug before joining them. "Be Good?" she asked, hoping.

"Whatever," Sam waved as the elevator doors closed.

Sam sat at the bar of the empty apartment. She twirled twice on the stool then proceeded to kick the gigantic first aid kit that was so carelessly left within her reach. After a few strikes at it she really began looking at it. _That is pretty big… _She jumped off the stool and opened the case. Mrs. Benson kept everything organized and labeled into neat little built-in chambers. Sam began poking around between the chambers and the sides of the case. Sure enough the whole kit could easily slide out of the case.

Sam pulled out the insides of the kit and shoved it under the sofa. She grabbed a throw blanket and spread it over the seat so that it draped a bit onto the floor. Nobody would see the insides of the kit hidden there unless they were looking. She climbed into the case and bent her knees up around her chin. She closed the flap to the case and pulled the zippers so that she had just enough space to peek and, more importantly, to breathe.

It only took a couple minutes before this really started to become uncomfortable. She began to wonder if she should go through with it. She also wondered if she should have gone to the bathroom first considering she just drank three glasses of iced tea. Unfortunately, she didn't have time to change her mind about either. She heard the elevator ding and Spencer and Freddie were back.

"I can't believe your mom actually let you go!" Spencer said, giving Freddie a fist bump.

Freddie began to swagger as they started to collect their gear. "Well you know, I just put my foot down and said, 'Look woman, I'm going to…'"

"You had to promise to go to Mother/Son cheese making classes, didn't you?" Spencer interrupted.

"Flowerpot painting, actually," Freddie said deflated.

"Oooh…I'm sorry." Spencer winced at the news.

Sam felt a sudden jerk as the case was picked up, then immediately dropped.

"Wow, Freddie! Your Mom is stronger than she looks. This thing weighs a ton!"

Sam shot a dirty look toward Spencer hoping her evil thought would somehow seep through the case.

"Oof," he grunted as he picked up the case and rolled it to the elevator with the rest of the gear. Spencer quickly locked up the apartment, then stepped onto the elevator and yelled in a triumphant voice. "Fish, Hide away in your little schools and quake like jellyfish, because we are coming to get you!" With that the elevator doors closed and Sam thought to herself. _You're in it now, Puckett. This is going to be a long trip._

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**So remember me mentioning that I had writers block on writing the last unfinished chapter of this story (one of the middle chapters, too). Well, a comment from Basco57 (read her stuff, she's hilarious) made me go back and re-read the reviews from some of my old stories. It jumpstarted my creative juices again. That chapter I sweated over for 2 weeks...done in 2 hours. Now I realize (soft violin music begins playing) that not only are the review enjoyable, but they serve to inspire the writers. So Please (holds out hand to the reader)...review my story. In all seriousness, hit the review button and tell me what you think. You like it, hate it, have a favorite part, think I should have left something out? Oh, and did you figure out what bedtime story I was inspired by? I will try not to break the chair as I jump up and down reading your reviews. Oh, and for Pete's sake (whoever the heck Pete is)! Review some of the other authors. There's some really good ones on here.**


	2. Sweet Relief

**Thanks to all who reviewed. Not bad for the first chapter. A few of you mentioned what your favorite parts were, (LOVE THAT) but I haven't seen anyone guess the bedtime story, yet. So...Nobody said that reading this story burned their eyes or that they felt compelled to bury their computers in a dark damp hole somewhere. That's good news, I think. Actually, everyone was really cool, and wanted me to get to the next chapter. Well, since you asked so nicely… Chapter 2 for you. About this story…Random character alert! No Seddie in this chap, sorry, but don't give up! This is mostly Sam. BTW: things written in _italics_ are usually unspoken thoughts. There's a lot of these coming up. **

**One more thing to get out of the way: **

**No, I don't own iCarly, or the characters. If I did, Carly would be cleaning my room, Freddie would be trying to increase the memory speed on my computer (really do need this!), Spencer would be making me breakfast in bed (preferably waffles with chipmunks on them made of chocolate chips) while serenading me with his banjo, and Sam would beat up the wierdo down the street that honks that stupid horn that sounds like a train whistle at 7am on a weekend morning. Now that that's done, everyone in the kiddie pool!**

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For the first million miles (or so it felt being crammed into a suitcase), Sam was sufficiently bored listening to Shay family updates and a session of 'Getting to Know Freddie.' She dozed off when he started his stupid tech talk so she had no idea how far they'd actually been traveling. She only perked up when she heard Mr. Shay say those magical words "how about we stop for lunch?"

"Hold on knees, sweet relief's a comin," she muttered as she felt the SUV pull off the road. As soon as they stopped her fingers were on the zipper waiting for them to leave.

'SLAM' "That's one door."

'SLAM' "Two." She waited, and waited…and waited. _Did two go of them out the same door_?

She peeked through her little hole and saw Spencer digging in the back seat looking for his other shoe.

_Oh, for the love of Cheese,_ She thought._ Would you hurry up! Some of us are a little tied_ _up here_…

"Got It!" He jumped up suddenly and startled her enough that she let out a loud gasp. He must have heard her because he was now slowly surveying the back of the SUV. Everything looked fine, except (unbeknownst to him) Sam, who was contorted into a suitcase holding her breath until he left.

"Spencer, come on!" Mr. Shay called. 'SLAM.'

"Coming," his voice trailed away as he ran toward the others.

"Three," Sam let out with the breath she had been holding.

Sam slowly pulled the zipper while listening for anything that sounded like they might be coming back. When she finally unzipped the case, she popped her head out to see where they were. She didn't recognize anything. It seemed to be some small town next to the woods. She could see her guys in the window of the old diner where they were parked. They were just getting seated and pulling out the menus.

"Great, I'll have some warning before they come back."

She fully unfolded herself from the case and spread out all over the gear in the back. She stretched her limbs as far as they could go. She was starting to feel all of the bruises coming up while she tried to work out the stiffness. She looked at a particularly purple spot just above her elbow. _I wonder how Mrs. B would feel if she knew how brutally they treated her precious first aid kit_?

When she finally felt less like a pretzel she remembered she needed to go to the bathroom. She looked up at the diner. Too risky, they'd see her come in. She looked around and saw a gas station next door. She immediately curled her nose. Gas station restrooms are gross. She looked back to see that the guys had just gotten their drinks but no food. _Plenty of time_. Sam crawled over the seat and out Freddie's door. She turned to leave, and came face to face with an old lady sitting in the seat of the car next to her.

"Excuse me, young lady," the woman asked. "Did I just see you come out of a suitcase back there?"

_Uh oh, busted. Think Sam, Think_. Sam let out a little chuckle.

"Uh…yeah, you caught me. You see, Granddad was taking the boys fishing. He doesn't think girls can fish, but I have before." She let out a little pout just for effect. "It's just been so long since I've seen Granddad that I wanted to spend some time with him, too." _There you go Sam, Milk It! _"Anyway, I just figured if I hid until they got there, then they wouldn't send me back and I'd get to spend a little time with him." The lady reached out and gave Sam's arm a little pat. _She bought it!_ "You're not going to tell him, are you," Sam asked excitedly.

"Of course not, honey." Sam noticed a hint of laughter in the old woman's eyes. _She is buying this, right?_ "But your mother knows where you are, right?"

_Oops_. "Uh…not yet." Sam answered. "I figured I'd wait until I was far enough out of town."

"Well you should be far enough from anywhere by now, Kiddo."

"Right," Sam said looking around. " I'll call her as soon as I go to the bathroom.

The woman saw that Sam was starting to bounce up and down. "Oh Child! Go! Go!" she shoed Sam away and chuckled.

Sam dashed to the bathroom She went as quickly as possible trying not to touch anything or breathe until she got out. Actually this restroom wasn't as dirty as usual gas station bathrooms. It must be a small town thing. She made sure to call her mom on the way back to the SUV. Telling her mom was easy; she just said she was going fishing with Carly's family for the weekend. Well, it wasn't lying…technically.

"Alright, bye then Mom." She finished her phone call just as she reached the SUV and the old woman.

"Everything good?" the old woman asked.

"Fine, she just said to have fun." Of course Sam omitted telling her mom the whole stowing away in a suitcase and hiding out for the weekend part, but who cared about the details anyway?

"The boys just got their food a minute ago so you have a little while to stretch" the woman smiled.

"Oh good," Sam smiled then cocked her head at the woman. "Why are you sitting here by yourself, anyway?" she asked.

The woman turned more to talk to Sam, "I came to have lunch with my daughter, but she's across the street now getting her nails done. I hate the smell of that place, so I chose to sit out here and listen to the hockey pre-game hoopla. I didn't know I'd find such interesting company." She smiled.

Suddenly there was a loud rumble coming from the general direction of Sam's stomach. "Oh hey! Someone is hungry!" the old woman laughed.

Sam held onto her stomach. "Don't mind him, he's always hungry." She sniffed the air, which was filled with wonderful scents wafting from the diner, "especially when there's food nearby."

"Well then, here" The old woman reached down to the seat and brought up a white box and held it toward Sam. "It's just half a grilled ham and cheese sandwich and some curly fries, but it should be enough to calm him down."

"Are you kidding? I love Ham!" Sam reached to take the container but then stopped. "Wait, tell me your name."

The woman laughed and held out her hand. "The name's Stella"

"Hi Stella, I'm Sam." She shook the woman's hand. "Great! Now we're not strangers!" Sam grabbed the box from Stella. "Cause, you know, you're not supposed to take food from strangers."

Sam had never seen an old person laugh so hard, especially at something she said. It wasn't even that funny, but Stella was laughing so hard it made her glasses foggy and it made Sam feel…good; a little bit worried Stella would have a stroke, maybe, but good. Sam sat in the back seat of the SUV and talked with Stella while eating her sandwich. She was surprised at how cool Stella was. Most of the old people she knew were smelly and cranky; like Lubert, but with more wrinkles. Stella told her about all of the trouble she used to get in when she was a teenager, like running away to join the roller derby (they called her Stella the Stinger), or lying about playing drums in a rock band just so she could date the lead singer, only to be found out while they were on stage at a rock festival. She also got to be an alien in the movie Galaxy Wars; her neighbor's son was in charge of the costume department. Spencer and Freddie would freak! If they only knew. Stella promised to send Sam a picture of her in costume, autographed by the cast.

Sam told her about some of the stunts they pulled on iCarly. She had just finished the story about the awards in Japan when she saw the waitress bring the guys the check and take the plates away. "Mrrr, they're leaving. Back to my cocoon." She quickly threw the empty box in the trash and stopped next to Stella.

"Hey, Stella. Can I have a picture with you," she asked as she pulled out her phone.

Stella was taken by surprise. "With me?"

"Of course, I always take my picture with cool people! I only hope I get to do half the stuff you've done."

She scrunched next to Stella and took a quick pic then jumped into the back and started folding herself into the case again. "See ya, Stinger." Sam had only just ducked her head into the case when she heard the guys. They were standing right next to her. She caught Stella's eyes in a panic, but Stella just winked at her and then turned her attention to Mr. Shay.

"Looks like you boys are going fishing, huh?" She really wasn't that much older than Mr. Shay, and she was really getting her flirt on.

"Yep, Guys weekend out," he said playfully boxing with Spencer. Sam gave a little giggle as she finished zipping the case around her.

"So what do you gentlemen call yourselves?" Stella asked.

"Well, I'm Spencer, and this is Freddie…" he said motioning behind him.

Stella chuckled. "I meant, what's your adventure name?" The guys just looked at each other confused. She went on to explain, "Whenever my late husband and his brothers went out hunting or fishing, they'd make up a name for themselves for their adventure; something manly and outdoorsy. One time they called themselves the falcons cause they can spot their prey from a mile away." She paused to remember then chuckled "Of course, that particular trip they didn't catch a thing…but you get the jist."

Spencer's eyes lit up. "I LIKE IT!" He looked at the other two men. "We need to have a tough name like some big animal."

"Mountain Lions," Mr. Shay threw in.

"BIGGER!" Spencer said with enthusiasm.

"How about Grizzlies?" Freddie asked sheepishly.

"YES! They're big and strong and…" Spencer held his hands like claws and stared swiping at the air in front of him, "…they can catch fish with their bare claws." He started chuckling at himself. "Get it BEAR claws." The rest of them gave a collective groan.

"Grizzlies it is," Stella announced and the guys all cheered.

"Well then, Grizzlies, All aboard" Mr. Shay announced. He tipped his hat to Stella, then they all started growling as they got into the SUV. Sam rolled her eyes. _They call that a growl_?

As the SUV started, Spencer summoned up his best Willie Nelson voice and started singing "On Road Again…" Sam still had her phone in her hand from when she took the picture with Stella. As they rocked their way back onto the highway, she aimed the camera through the hole and pressed record on the video. This was so stupid; it had to go on iCarly.

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There you have it. Not particularly important to the plot but it does roll the story along and gives you an idea of how long Sam had to be in the case (plus one more reason I don't feel like sharing just yet, hee hee). I did actually consider editing out this chapter (like I did two others) but decided to keep it. So tell me…did I make the right decision? Should I have deleted it? Again, share with me, what did you like or hate. Anyone figure out the bedtime story yet?

**FYI#1 Stella is actually based on a real person. She's this real hip chick I know who lives in Sin City, She's 73 and still skates. Keep Rollin' Stinger! **

**FYI #2 My dad used to sing that song that Spencer is singing here, every time we went on a road trip. One time my cousin snuck into the Van when we were leaving thier houe and caught him. It embarrassed him (cute). My dad does a lot of Spencerish things, though. Gotta love him! **

**Alright, Send me your reviews. I'm a big girl, I can take it! Please and Thank you!**


	3. An Unwanted Rescue

**Well, hello there, come on in! Glad to see you. How's the family? Good? Good. So, why don't you make yourself comfy. Can I fluff your pillow for you? Grab you a drink or anything? Read you a bedtime story, I know a good one! No? Ok. (BTW: Wow you guys really responded well to Stella. She will end up having a special place in the story later.)**

**So, now that I have you all relaxed, I have a confession to make: (cue sad music) As some of you reviewers already know, if you send me a signed review…I reply. (Ok, Calm down.) I know it's horrible, but it gets worse…I look at your profiles too! (I can see you're shocked) I can't help it! (Sob). And…I read some of your stories…and I actually like some of them! (Rolls on the floor wailing!) I even review sometimes!! (stops wailing) Wait, you don't mind? Some of you actually like it?...(shocked) You Sickos! **

**OK. (sniff) Let me pull myself together. What? I forgot something? Oh, ALL RIGHT! I don't own iCarly. There you happy now? Thanks for rubbing it in. (Takes a deep soothing breath) Sorry, didn't mean to be short with you, I just need a moment. Why don't you just read the story or something and I'll meet you at the end. Thanks**

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The last several miles were tightly winding roads along steep hillsides. The case Sam was hiding in rocked back and forth, making her sense of balance something of a memory. The only thing to keep her from completely tipping over was the fact that she was wedged against the other bags in the back of the SUV. She tried to peek out the zipper to see the road ahead, but the trees whizzed past at such a dizzying speed that, for the first time in her life, Sam Puckett was carsick.

As her nausea built so did her level of panic. She was not one to puke easily. The last time was in the 4th grade when she bet Robby Felix that she could eat a live centipede. She would have won, but she refused to chew, and she began to imagine it crawling back up. Even though she hated losing, it was worth it to see Robby Felix's face after she threw up all over him! Anyway, she couldn't lose it now, not in this tight space. She had to give up. Her hand was already on the zipper when she felt the SUV turn off onto a gravel road.

"Buddy's place is just at the end of this lane," Mr. Shay said. "Slow down Spence. Small animals sometimes jump out along this little road." _The end of the road? Thank cheese we're almost there. _Sam backed her hand away from the zipper and breathed a sigh of relief. Now at the lower speed she could relax and listen to the guys' conversation as they made their way over the gravelly road.

"It was nice of your friend to loan us his cabin for the weekend, Mr. Shay," Freddie said as he started to collect his stuff that had spread across the seat.

"Yeah, well he owed me one." Mr. Shay smiled as he started digging through stuff. "The cabin's alright, but wait till you get a load of what he's got out front. He had his son bring it in for us early this morning."

"Whatcha looking for Granddad?" Spencer was trying to watch the road while his Granddad raided Socko's glove box.

"I had the key to the cabin and the alarm code in my pocket when I left. I have the key now, but I can't seem to find the alarm code. It was on a green piece of paper." He started looking around the floorboards and in the seat. Spencer got an awkward surprise when Mr. Shay reached back under his hip to look, and hit a ticklish spot only Spencer's last girlfriend knew about.

"I think he said it was the year we got back from our tour of duty through the South Pacific." The brakes of the SUV let out a tiny squeal as the journey finally came to an end.

"Here we are, safe and sound," Spencer announced as he cut the engine. "Wow, the cabin's kinda schpanky!"

"Yeah, the cabin's nice, but take a look out there at Marilyn." Sam couldn't see where Mr. Shay was pointing, but Freddie let out a groan of excitement. "She's ours for the weekend Grizzlies." Freddie and Spencer growled in appreciation. "Why don't we get this stuff in, then we can take her out for a bit before sundown."

Sam heard the doors immediately fly open, and the SUV rocked under the shifting of weight. She could just make out Mr. Shay headed toward the front of the Cabin when the back hatch suddenly opened. She began to feel things moving around her as they were unloading the bags. She was relieved about some of the things being taken out, like whatever was dug into her lower back. She didn't much care for the large tackle box that scraped against her arm as they pulled it out, though. She could hear the back emptying out, and braced herself knowing that she would be moving soon, too. Suddenly there was a loud high pitch screeching noise coming from inside the cabin.

"Granddad!" Spencer dropped the bag in his hand and he and Freddie ran toward the door. Mr. Shay came running out of the cabin with his hands covering his ears. "I put in the code, but I guess I hit the wrong button." "What's the code?" Spencer yelled above the deafening screech. Sam couldn't hear what Mr. Shay was yelling, but Spencer ran up to the cabin.

Spencer came back fairly quickly, though no luck. The screeching seemed louder than ever. "Granddad, is there anyone you can call?" Spencer yelled as he ran back to the SUV. "No. Buddy's in Mexico with his 4th wife." Mr. Shay's face squinted against the noise.

Sam saw Freddie disappear into the house without the others noticing. Mr. Shay alternated covering his ears and digging though his pockets for the alarm code. "I must have dropped it somewhere." After his third time shoving his hands in his pockets, the alarm suddenly stopped.

"What? Why did it just stop?" Spencer shook his head and pounded his ears with his palm to stop the ringing. Freddie appeared around the corner and put a small metal object back into his pocket. "I just adjusted the wires to reset," he said with a smug smile on his face. _Little Fredward can disarm alarms? I'll have to buy that boy a smoothie so I can pick his brain._

They began to pick up the bags again when the sound of tires against gravel could be heard coming up the drive. Sam couldn't see the car coming, but out of the small hole in the bag, she could see Freddie and Spencer's faces suddenly turn white. Freddie looked like he was about to be sick. A car door slammed and she could hear someone slowly walking toward the SUV.

"Afternoon, Sheriff." Mr. Shay tried to sound cheery, but there was an edge of nervousness to his voice. "We have reports of an alarm going off here." The sheriff spoke slowly and with a slight drawl in his voice. "You boys havin' a problem here?"

"Uh, No sir." Mr. Shay had mysteriously picked up the sheriff's drawl. "This is my old Navy buddy's cabin. He's letting us borrow it while he's on his honeymoon in Mexico with his new wife." Mr. Shay let out a nervous laugh and rubbed his neck. " I sort of lost the alarm code, though. I thought he said it was when we got back from the South Pacific. I must have punched it in wrong though."

"Are you Charlie Shay?" The sheriff smiled.

"Yes…" Mr. Shay looked curiously at him.

"Buddy told me you might come up. He tells the dangdest stories about you two. It's nice to finally put a face to the legend." He held out his hand to shake with Mr. Shay. "I'm Sheriff Sonny Palmer. So what happened to the alarm?" The officer asked pointing to the cabin.

"Uh…I, uh." Freddie stammered.

"It must have reset itself," Spencer interrupted, squeezing a relieved Freddie on the shoulder.

Sheriff Palmer stood silently looking at the three (nervous) faces in front of him before he abruptly said, "Well then, let me help you boys out here." The Sheriff walked to the back of the SUV and grabbed the handle to the bag that Sam was in.

_Oh, Holy Ham! Please don't look in here!_ _Please don't look in here!_ _Please don't look in here!_ Sam squeezed her eyes shut and held tight as her bag rocked back.

"Uh, Sheriff Palmer," Spencer stopped him. "The boy's mother is a tad overprotective. It's just a first aid kit. I think we cab leave that one in here unless we have an emergency." The sheriff eyed Spencer for a moment then looked at Freddie. Freddie's face turned beet red and he shrugged shyly at the sheriff. "She made me wear a helmet for two years after I learned how to walk."

The Sheriff let out a hearty laugh, then let go of the handle. Sam's case rocked back into place and she could hear the tinkling of the fishing rods being brought out of the truck. "These are some nice rods, boys. Make sure you get your licenses before you go out. There's a bait shop just about four miles up the road here. They're open early." Sam could hear some noise coming from the Sheriffs radio and he stopped to listen.

"Well, looks like I gotta go, boys." He pat Mr. Shay on the arm and started toward his cruiser. "We'll be having barbecue later, Sheriff," Mr. Shay smiled. "You're welcome to come by." "Thanks, but the wife will be expecting me by then. You boys have a great weekend, and stay out of trouble."

The sheriff waved as he drove back down the path with the lights flashing. Freddie let out a breath that he must have been holding the entire time and collapsed onto the tailgate of the SUV. Sam didn't hear him because she was letting out her own breath. _That was so close, I think I almost peed myself. Betcha Freddie's underpants aren't so white anymore. _

Mr. Shay ruffled Freddie's hair. "Good job, kid. Let's get this stuff inside, then we can go see Marilyn." As much as Sam had been anxious to get out, her close call left her content to stay right where she was for the moment. Her total fear of getting caught had completely overridden her nausea.

After a few minutes she could hear the guys coming out of the cabin. It sounded like they were getting ready to go into town. _Ah, come on. At least make it a quick trip so I can stretch my legs, guys._ She waited to hear the sound of their footsteps on the gravel, the weight of the SUV shifting as they each got in, the vibrations against the case as the engine started…but she seemed to be waiting a very long time.

Their voices kept getting farther away, until they finally died out completely. She listened carefully. Out in the distance, she could hear the sound of a motor starting. It was different from a car motor; deeper, more rumbling. The motor's sound was getting farther away until she was eventually left in silence. _What to do, heh heh_!

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**(happy music playing in backgroun) Alright, I'm feeling much better now. (I'm so glad I can joke with you guys, life would be too boring if I couldn't mess with you every now and then.)**

**Hmm, schpanky. (def: a little more than cool, a little less than awesome) I don't know, just a word I made up when I couldn't think of anything else. Seemed Spencerppropriate (ha! another new word). So…guy's weekend away. You knew there had to be trouble. They're such a coordinated lot, ain't they? **

**Okay, we now know Mr. Shay's first name. Should I have the kids call him Mr. Shay, or Charlie? Let me know. Also, one of the chapters I deleted had a lot to do with Mr. and Mrs. Shay's past, and their connection to Buddy. It was really fun to write (and a little like another pair we all know and love), but it seemed sort of long, and not necessary to tell _this_ story. If you'd be interested in hearing it let me know and I'll add it to the end. Oh, one more thing. Nobody guessed the Bedtime story yet. Not even any random guesses! There was one clue in chapter 2. Did you catch it? **

**So, everybody… that little button down there with the green writing isn't just there to be pretty. No, sir! It has a unique purpose. If you use it to review, it magically makes me a better writer (hint hint)! It even works if you want to send the review unsigned. (Ok, I'll shut up about the reviews now) Thanks again. Luna.**


	4. Alone in the Cabin

**Woot Woot! Another chapter down. I'll be short here with the a/n's. Thanks for all the kind comments. Thanks to all those I couldn't get back to, too.**

**We all know I don't own iCarly. No matter how much I may try to tempt, tease, or torture to have them, they still belong to Nickelodeon and Mr. Schneider. Sooo...I'm just gonna sit here and make up stories about them, so NYEH!**

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Sam squeezed her way out of the case. Looking in the distance she could see a boat making it's way through a canal and three familiar heads on board. _So, that's Marilyn?_

She crawled out of the SUV and looked at the cabin. It was smaller than she expected, and surrounded by trees. It was light brown with a large grassy area in front. A little stone picnic table was on the lawn just a few feet from the cabin. Next to it was a large barbecue pit that looked well used. There was a path that led from the front door all the way down to the dock where the boat just left. This part of the water was a man made canal that allowed the boats to be docked near the cabins. When she looked farther out to the west she could just see a bit of the ocean. At her best guess, they were about a half-mile away; luckily the neighbors were pretty far away too.

She made her way to the door and took out her emergency bobby pin. In a matter of seconds the door clicked open and she went inside. _Figures the Dork Tribe wouldn't set it. Man, they came so close to getting me busted_!

The first room she entered was a small sitting room. There were only two chairs and a coffee table that sat next to a cozy fireplace. A TV was set up at the end. The room was so small that in five steps she had fully crossed it. She ended up in the kitchen, or at least the stove and sink portion of the same room. It was divided from the rest by a small island with a short refrigerator at the end. Sam's stomach immediately started to growl so she began rummaging through the cupboards. Not a crumb was in sight. The closest thing she found to food was spices, honey and condiments in the cupboard. The rest of the cupboards only had dishes and cookery. "Blah. They better get some food in this jank place, real quick!"

Sam wandered past the kitchen and into the first bedroom. Her eyes immediatly went wide, "Whoa!" The room was big. There was a bed, a fancy desk with a leather chair, a full size closet, a large window covered with blinds…and about twenty various dead animal heads lining the walls. She cautiously walked up to the first head, a deer. The brown eyes were huge and they followed her as she walked through the room. She was definitely feeling uneasy about this guy. She backed her way toward the closet and ran right into the head of a wildcat. Its teeth were bared and very sharp. "AH, Heck No! Puckett Out!

She jumped over Mr. Shay's suitcase and quickly ran toward the door. She was almost through it when she caught sight of something out the corner of her eye. There on the edge of the desk was a large jar with a shiny label that read _Shay's Homemade Turkey Jerky_, and two large bags filled different flavored fruit rolls. Sam looked at the jar and then the heads around the room. Her inner battle was cut short by the loud rumble coming from her stomach. "Agh, Alright!" Sam took two steps back in, then leapt across the bed to grab the jar. She tucked the jar under her arm, then without hitting the floor, made one more gigantic leap back to the door. She stuck the landing, grabbed the jar from under her arm and raised her arms like a gymnast presenting to the judges.

"Ta-Da! Now for my reward!" She reached into the jar and grabbed out a piece of the jerky. She ripped off a chunk and closed her eyes as she savored the flavor. "Mmm, Mmm. I loves me some turkey jerky."

She turned back once more to look at the room behind her. "Ugh," she shuddered. "Too creepy!" She reached back to shut the door, and then moved on to the next room.

She opened the next door, and the shock to her eyeballs made her feel like she was about to go blind. The room was a floor to ceiling floral nightmare. The bright pink and yellow flowers on the wallpaper were as big as her head. What was worse, the room had so much potpourri that it smelled like each one of those monster flowers were giving off it's own scent. "Ew. Too frou frou!" She wrinkled her nose.

"What poor loser got stuck with this nightmare?" She looked over to the corner and saw Spencer's bag next to another enormous closet door. She stepped in the room and saw the bed. It was probably the biggest bed she had seen in her life. It was so big that it looked like her Aunt Maggie and six cousins could all sleep in it.

"Well the good news, Spencer, is that your feet won't hang off the end, like usual. The bad news is you'll probably end up puking at the bedspread all night." It was the same hideous flower print that was on the walls; only someone felt the need to make it more of a nightmare by adding ruffles.

She plopped down on the edge of the bed. It was surprisingly springy. She climbed up and started jumping up and down. This was almost as good as the trampoline. She jumped higher and higher until she could easily reach the ceiling, then she had a wonderfully devious idea.

She quickly ran back into the kitchen to grab the honey from the cabinet. She stood back on the bed then took out a piece of the jerky. She covered one side with honey and began to bounce. The fourth bounce sent her high enough to hit the ceiling and she stuck the jerky, honey side up, above the center of the bed. Once she saw that it stayed, she grabbed another piece and tried again. "Brill-i-ant! Ha. Change of Plans!"

She jumped off and ran back into Mr. Shay's room. She covered her eyes so she wouldn't see the twenty other pair of eyes staring back at her. She pulled out the bags of yellow pineapple and green apple flavored fruit rolls then went back into Spencer's room. She took one more glance at the ceiling. "Yes! Still stickay!" She grabbed the honey bottle and continued with her jumping and sticking routine until nearly half her supplies were gone.

When she was done, she put the fruit rolls in the jar with the remaining jerky and laid on the bed to admire her artwork. The ceiling above the center of the bed was covered in a three-foot wide picture of a giant bumblebee with an enormous stinger. "Don't you dipwads know that flowers attract bees?" She pulled out her phone and snapped a couple pics, then she looked at the remaining honey in her jar. "Well, we can't let this go to waste, can we?"

She stood up and squeezed a drop of the amber liquid onto her finger. "Mmm. Tasty! I must share some with Spencer." She said with evil glee. She pulled back the floral disaster of a bedspread, turned over the bottle of honey, and drizzled elegant swirly patterns all over the rosebud sheets. With just a tiny bit left, she drizzled it onto the pillows, then turned the pillows over before putting the bed back together and throwing the honey jar underneath.

Once satisfied with the damage, she headed for the closet. She tripped over Spencer's bag and a pair of Socko's special socks spilled out the top. _I always wondered what makes these babies light up. _Sam kicked off her shoes and pulled the purple plaid pair over her feet. They must have been made for Spencer because she could pull them up over her knees like fuzzy grape tights. They were surprisingly soft, and toasty warm, but they weren't lighting up. She tried shaking her legs, running around the room, jumping up and down…no lights. "Jank Socks!" She reached for the top of them to take them off and hit a little round hard disk built into the socks. All of a sudden they started flashing green and yellow lights. "Hey cool, they work!"

She held out her legs to admire the light show in front of her. "Yeah, Spencer really should be more careful about his stuff. I mean, it's so easy for things like this to get lost." She smiled to herself as she slipped her shoes back on.

"So, What's Ol' Buddy got hiding in the big closet." She quickly pulled open the door; it was big, alright. It was so big that the closet was actually a whole other bedroom. This room was much smaller than the other two, though. There was small bed taking up the whole center of the room, and a tiny table with a clock and lamp next to it. It was decorated in boyish blue and brown stripes. There wasn't room for a dresser, so Freddie's bag and laptop were stuffed under the end of the bed. There was another narrower door that led out to the main part of the cabin. It looked as if they had turned the bedroom and hall closets into an old nursery room.

Perhaps the most beautiful thing in the room was the window on the far wall that showed the view over the water. She slid open the lock and raised the window. A cool breeze floated in. It smelled like sea air and pine trees. "No way it smells like this in Seattle." From the window she could see the empty dock. She found that the window was low enough that even if she were lying down, she'd be able to see if the boat was coming. She stretched out on the bed. It was incredibly comfortable. It wasn't too hard, or too soft, or too springy…it was just right.

Sam pulled out another piece of jerky and sat gazing at the view for a few more minutes. It was nice and quiet…too quiet. The clock on the nightstand had a radio in it. She flipped through the radio stations until she found one that played something fairly decent and turned it up as loud as it would go. After that, she pulled out Freddie's laptop and started signing him up to have random STD and Furrie's Anonymous Newsletters sent to his apartment. _Yeah, that ought to keep Mama Dork busy for a while!_

Half an hour later a strong breeze suddenly blew through the window and made Sam shudder. She reached down under the bed for Freddie's duffel. "Freddi-ding-dong is supposed to be a gentleman and all that chizz. He won't mind loaning a lady his hoodie." She grabbed the tan one with the green and yellow graphics on the front. "Hey, cool. It matches the socks!"

Sam had just managed to pull the hoodie over her head when she saw the boat coming back toward the cabin. "Oh, Man!" She quickly turned off the radio and shut down the laptop. Freddie would have had a conniption if he knew she just held down the power button instead of going through the proper procedures, but there wasn't time.

She grabbed the jerky, hopped out the window and closed it just before the boat made its turn into the dock. She ducked down behind the SUV so she couldn't be seen and waited for them to pass. Shifting her position to stay out of sight, she saw them each carrying a couple of large bags to the cabin. Spencer was practically skipping excitedly as he brought up the rear.

"Are you ready, Freddie?" Spencer beamed.

"For what?"

"For What?" Spencer asked incredulously. "Just the most amazing barbecue experience of your young life!"

Freddie laughed a Spencer's enthusiasm.

"Granddad here is the master of the barbecue. The cooking channel comes to _him_ for tips…or at least they should." He hands his bags to Mr. Shay. "Yes, young Freddie, your taste buds will be so dazzled that all other foods will pale in comparison."

"Nice! And without Sam here, I might actually get to eat it. I can't wait." Freddie beamed.

"Oh, but perfection takes time, Fredward san. The marriage between the tenderest meat and the perfect blend of spices is…" Spencer stopped is speech and grinned at Freddie. "Yeah, I can't wait either! Granddad…Let's get this party started!"

As the door closed, Sam's head sprang up from her hiding place. She looked like one of those meerkats on that nature show. A wide grin spread across her face as only one thought filled her mind… "Did somebody say barbecue?"

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Who knew Sam had such artistic creativity? I sooo wanna try this! So, I think I'd like to take my next vacation here (especially if Marilyn is included). But, I wouldn't I want Mr. Shay's room (Eww)…or the Spencer room. I wonder if Freddie's bed is big enough for all of us. Whatcha think, wanna come?

**FYI: I saw **_**this**_** boat at the beach one day (funniest day ever) It's the only one I've ever seen like it. It would comfortably hold up to 8 people. It had a cool name, but Marilyn seemed like a better fit for a guy like Buddy. BTW, the REAL Stella has a Real daughter named Marilyn. Yeah, I keep stealing names...but that's the last one.**

**I love the ie sneaky side of Sam, but I am reeaally feeling guilty about leaving the Seddie hanging so long. but I hope you're enjoying it, anyway. I would have edited it to speed it up, but then it probably would have taken me longer to update. So, shorter chapters to Seddie, or quicker time, just got to read some funny Seddiless stuff in the meantime?**

**Next up…Sam develops her Ninja skills and our first actual Seddie moment (No, really. I Promise!). I think it counts, anyway…I'll cover my ears just in case (AwkwardSquirrel ;D). Sorry it's taken so long to get here, but hey,…good things come to those who wait. Right? Shucks! As a peace offering, I'll even try to update this one a little sooner than I planned.**


	5. Suppertime

**Wow, you guys really reviewed the heck out of Chapter 4. Did I mention I love your reviews? I've met a lot of cool kittens through them, like: Cupcakeslam23, DROWN-IN-SEQUINS, Hypo'Lana, HarissBoBariss...and a few others. (If I'm forgetting you, I'm sorry. It's late and I have the memory of a goldfish.)**

**So, I owe a few virtual sundaes. The first one goes to the legendary Mizufae. She figured out in Chapter 3 that the bedtime story is Goldilocks and the Three Bears. Lets hear it for Mizufae (Wild cheering erupts). That was fun, thanks for playing along. **

**So I suppose you're wanting to get right to the chapter after what I promised, huh? Well let me just take care of one more thing. I don't own iCarly. I'm still kind of depressed about it and stuff, but I'll get over it...eventually. **

**So kids, Please keep your hands and feed in the ride at all times. You may exit at at the bottom where that little button reads, "Review this Story/Chapter". Enjoy!**

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Sam decided now was an excellent time to try out her invisible ninja skills. She snuck around the back of the cabin to the kitchen window. She could see Mr. Shay seasoning up the steak with some herb, salt, and lime juice mixture. Spencer had a manic look in his eye as he grabbed the lighter fluid and went out to start the barbecue.

Freddie looked at Mr. Shay skeptically. "Are you sure you want Spencer to light the barbecue? Trusting Spencer with fire is like trusting Sam with Ham."

Sam giggled and rolled her eyes. "Got that right, Nubmaster."

Mr. Shay pat Freddie's shoulder. "Doesn't hurt to live dangerously, every now and then." He smiled as he pulled out a very large, very sharp knife and stabbed it into the cutting board. "_You_ get to do the chopping!" Freddie's eyes gleamed as he grabbed the handle of the knife and pulled it out of the board.

She grabbed out her phone and snapped a quick pic. _Oh yeah, Crazy would have a seizure if she could see this! Careful Freddie boy, first aid kit's not up to standard at the moment_.

Mr. Shay threw some pasta into a pot just as there was a loud explosion coming from the front yard. Freddie's knife slipped and he shot the zucchini he was cutting out the window. Sam reached out with catlike reflexes and caught it while Freddie and Mr. Shay were turned toward the boom. Sam watched as Spencer bounded through the door, then stopped and leaned casually against the doorframe. "The fire's ready," he said calmly, as if everything were normal

Sam couldn't help but let out a giggle and took another pic when she noticed that Spencer's eyebrows were smoking. Freddie turned to look back toward the window, but Sam ducked down out of sight before anyone saw her. _Oh yeah! Invisible Ninja 101, baby!_

Mr. Shay grabbed the steaks and headed toward the barbecue as Spencer went to the sink to cool his singed eyebrows. Freddie stood peering out the window, looking for what made the noise.

"Whatcha looking for, Fred," Spencer asked as he stole a slice of zucchini.

"I thought I heard Sa…" Freddie shook his head to release the thought. "Probably just a bird. It sounded like someone was laughing."

Sam slipped her way back into the trees, ninja style, and waited for them to start the cooking. She was already drooling over the smell; after all, it had been over an hour since she last ate. Mr. Shay _was_a barbecue master. He was handling the barbecue like he was directing a symphony. Sam was unaware that she was drifting toward the smell of the food. It was sort of like those cartoons where someone floats behind the smell of a pie, or some other delicious aroma. She accidentally snapped a twig and Mr. Shay's head shot in her direction. _Oop._ She was still hidden, so she remained still until his attention turned back to the grill_. Alright, Back to ninja mode, Puckett_.

She pulled herself away from the amazing barbecue smell and toward the kitchen. She peeked through the window again. Freddie was buttering some huge slices of Italian bread, while Spencer was putting together his famous warm pasta salad. The final ingredient was still sitting next to the bowl waiting to be added…a small bowl of cubed ham. _SCORE!_

Sam looked around for anything that would cause a distraction, and finally saw a good-sized rock on the ground. She waited for her moment, and then chucked it through the window as hard as she could. It hit a framed picture that fell off the wall and shattered all over the floor. When both Spencer and Freddie looked back to see what the noise was, Sam reached though the window and grabbed the bowl of ham and a slice of the buttered bread. Then she scooted to the back of the cabin and out to the trees before they could see her.

Freddie went to the narrow closet across from the kitchen to get a broom, and Spencer turned back to his salad. He reached for his bowl of ham only to discover it wasn't there. He frantically picked up everything on the counter looking for his lost ham while Sam stood back in the tees watching. She looked down at the bowl. She had already eaten half of the cubed deliciousness. Feeling a little guilty, she shoved the bread in her mouth and snuck her way back to the window. Awww. _Spencer's pasta salad wouldn't be the same without ham_.

She waited until Freddie was throwing away the broken glass and Spencer was digging in the drawer for some utensil or something. She reached over and put the bowl of ham next to the pasta. Spencer turned back to his pasta and saw the bowl of half eaten ham that reappeared. His utensils crashed to the floor as he let out a high pitch scream. "But it was…and then, Poof…and now…but where's the rest of the…" He slumped his shoulders in defeat and sadly dropped what was left of the cubed ham in the pasta. Spencer grabbed the pasta bowl and slumped away; Freddie following close behind.

Sam followed them at a safe distance. She found a perfect vantage point just mere steps from the table. Freddie was bringing plates up for Mr. Shay to fill as food was coming off the grill. Spencer brought full plates back for him and Mr. Shay and Freddie took his to the other side of the table. T_his smells awesome…MUST HAVE SOME!_

Mr. Shay called Spencer to bring an extra plate so they could get the last pieces of bread off the grill, while Freddie ran inside to get some drinks. Sam took advantage of the empty table and made her move. She took a bite of Mr. Shay's steak. _Ugh! Too Rare!_ She grabbed the corncob off of Mr. Shay's plate and the steak off of Spencer's. _Ow, Ow, Hot, Hot, Hot!!_ She juggled them to keep her hands from burning as she reached over to Freddie's side and grabbed his plate. She dumped everything off the plate and onto the stone table then started for her retreat. _Oops, one more thing._ She reached back and grabbed the full bowl of pasta salad then went back to her hiding spot to enjoy her pilfered prizes.

When the guys came back to the table, Mr. Shay looked down at his steak. He stabbed the meat with his fork and brought it up to show the others. "Somebody's been eating off my plate!"

Spencer looked down at his plate and noticed the missing steak. "Somebody's been eating off of my plate, look." He picked it up and showed the juice where the steak had been, but now was gone.

Freddie looked down and shook his head in surprise. "It's gone!" Mr. Shay looked up in surprise. "Your steak is gone, too?" "No," Freddie answered in shock. "The plate is gone. The food is just sitting on the table." He picked up his steak to show them. They all sat silently and looked at the food on the bare table. "Weird," Spencer finally muttered

Freddie got up to get another plate. "Hey, Freddo," Spencer called, "Can you grab a serving spoon for the…AHHH!" Spencer finally noticed that the pasta salad was no longer on the table. "First the ham…missing…and then it was there…now the bowl…but the ham…gone, all gone!" Mr. Shay calmed him down by cutting his steak in half and giving some to Spencer. They were pretty big pieces, anyway. It took Sam a whole five minutes to heat through it.

The sun was starting to set as Sam finished her plate…uh, actually Freddie's plate. She ran around to the window and put the plate in the sink and the bowl of pasta salad on the counter…minus the ham, of course. _Mmm. Good food makes me sleepy._ She crept around the cabin and back to the SUV. She was about to crawl in and take a nap when she heard someone coming. She quickly rolled under the SUV and waited. Mr. Shay went to unlock the door but noticed it was already unlocked. "Spencer! That kid would forget his head, if it wasn't permanently attached." Mr. Shay got in and started digging though the glove compartment for something. _Give up on the code, already old man, Mama needs a nap!_ He found what he was looking for, made sure to lock the doors, then jogged back excitedly to the front. Sam curled her lip and looked up at the sky, _Couldn't make it easy for me, could you Big Guy?_

She crawled out from under the SUV and decided to check Freddie's window. It was higher from this side, but she still managed to raise it up enough to crawl in. The first thing she did was check to see where the guys were. She could see them out the front window. They were bent across the picnic table looking at a map of some sort. She made a quick dash to the refrigerator to grab a cold root beer, and took a long drink from her bottle. She looked toward the front as she heard the doorknob turning. The guy were heading up the walk. She didn't have time to make it back to the room. She ducked down behind the end of the island. Luckily, it was getting kind of dark in the kitchen now.

She stayed as still as possible. Freddie put the dishes in the sink, and noticed the bowl on the counter next to it. "Hey Spencer, Your salad is here." "What?" Spencer tripped over the chair as he spun around to see. "No Way! I'm sure I took that out…didn't I?" Spencer stood scratching his head as looked at the bowl in front of him. Something didn't look right to him, though. Spencer grabbed a fork and started digging through the salad so fast, it looked like he was searching for treasure. "It's gone! Not one bit of it left!…Where did all the ham go?" Freddie and Spencer stared at each other with puzzled expressions.

Mr. Shay finally broke their curious trance. Hey, the hockey game starts in 10 minutes, guys. Why don't I get this fire going and you two clean up before the game starts."

"You wash, I'll dry," Spencer bargained with Freddie.

Freddie started doing the dishes and Spencer took advantage of the time to find his lucky socks. Sam evaluated her situation. She couldn't go back to the front room. Mr. Shay was there. Freddie was blocking her from going out through the kitchen and she couldn't get back to Freddie's room without Spencer seeing her. She looked around her. The only place she had left was the broom closet. It was right across from the kitchen, and next to the sitting room. _I could be safe there, and still see the game._

She peeked again. No one was looking, now was her chance. She crawled her way over to the closet and pulled herself in. She had barely gotten the door closed when Spencer came bounding out of the room. "Hey, has anyone seen my lucky socks? I have to have them for the game. The Seattle Blades have never won a game that I wasn't wearing those socks." Sam rolled her eyes. _Uh huh, because they don't train for months and practice nearly every day. No! The entire championship is dependent solely on Spencer's socks!_

Spencer went back to look after the other's shook their heads no. Freddie was well though the dishes by now, and Mr. Shay had a nice fire going. Sam settled herself into a comfy position and cracked open the door just a tiny bit in order to see the TV. Just because she was trapped, didn't mean she had to miss the most anticipated Blade's game of the season. Mr. Shay turned on the TV just as they had just finished the Canadian national anthem (away game), and she could hear the announcer calling the line-up. Freddie's dishes got a bit noisier as he rushed to finish, so that he could see the face off.

A few minutes later the crowd and announcers went silent. The two captains took center ice, waiting for the puck to drop. Freddie threw the sponge back into the sink and rushed to take a seat. "Finished! Spencer they're starting!" Spencer came running in and bounced over the chair. "I can't find my lucky socks! It's all on you guys tonight," he yelled at the TV. The puck dropped and so did the action. It was a rough game for the Blades. Cherovsky was on his game so far and stopped three of the opponent's goals from entering the net, but Dickerson got body checked into the boards and was out for the rest of the game with a dislocated shoulder. The game wasn't easy on Sam either. She had gotten so excited that she knocked over the broom stand and hit her head with the broom and mop handles...twice. She may have let out a few expletives, too. Luckily the guys were too busy letting out a few of their own to notice.

Spencer took advantage of Dickerson's time out to attend to putting the dishes away… now that they had been ignored long enough to air dry. The announcers were recapping the game so far. They were just getting ready to show Dickerson's body check in slo-mo replay when Spencer hopped over the island and stood right in her line of vision. Now the only thing she had a good look at was Spencer's flat rear end…wait, that wasn't the only thing she had in her line of vision. There, just peeking out of Spencer's back pocket, were the keys to the SUV. She took advantage of Spencer's distraction and gently lifted them out of his pocket.

"Gotcha,_" _she whispered triumphantly. Spencer's hand brushed against his back pocket and he turned his head toward the closet. Luckily, the game had come back on and Spencer was distracted by the action on the ice. He still stood in Sam's way, though, so she couldn't see what was going on until he ran toward the TV yelling, "Oh, Come on. Ref!" Apparently Fischer got a two-minute penalty for tripping when the guy actually ran over Fischer's skate. The game didn't get much better from there. In period two Cherovsky let in two goals and a fight broke out on the ice with their leading shooter. The coach was so mad that he started arguing with the ref and even he got thrown out of the game…maybe Spencer had a point about the lucky socks. Too bad he couldn't find them, we sure could have used them.

After such a disappointing game, Freddie got up and turned off the TV. "Well, we might as well hit the hay if we want to get an early start on the fishing tomorrow," Mr. Shay suggested. They all said their goodnights and filtered out of the room. As soon as she heard all three doors shut, Sam crept her way quietly out the front door, and around to the SUV. Through the cabin window she could see Freddie. It was dark outside so she was pretty sure he couldn't see her. She stood behind the SUV and watched as he got ready for bed. He had already changed into his pajama pants, but he had just taken off his t-shirt to trade for the tank that he slept in. She couldn't help but notice that he was beginning to get some definition to his arms and chest. The more she looked the more she realized that he could probably take her now, if he tried. She started to wonder if maybe he hadn't realized that. If he did realize, did he still let her win? Either way, she wasn't sure how she felt about Freddie's new development. It didn't look bad, though; she noticed that too. She pulled out her phone and snapped another pic. She was brought out of her ogling when Freddie took a quick look out the window. _Oh shoot_, _He must have seen the flash_. She ducked down behind the SUV so he couldn't see her. He finally switched off his lamp, and she looked down at the picture. Maybe she'd save this one in her personal files. Sam unlocked the SUV, ready to finally get some sleep from her long, cramped day. She had just settled into the back seat when heard a loud high pitch scream come from inside the cabin. "Looks like Spencer found my art project." She smiled.

The weather might have been nice for spring during the day, but that night it was getting really frigid. Sam had tried for the past two hours to get to sleep, but the weather was getting colder. She didn't have any blankets, and was already hugged in as tight as she could get. She shook violently as she breathed on her hands to bring feeling back into her numb fingers. She had the keys, but she couldn't chance starting the engine for fear that someone would wake up. With no way to get warm, she was going to have to go back into the house, or she'd freeze. She opened the door and crawled out quietly. She peeked through Freddie's window. He was asleep with his mouth open, and the blankets barely covering him. _Man, it must be warm if he can sleep like that._ She let out a huge yawn and rubbed her eyes. _Man, I am so tired. I'm about to drop._ She felt a breeze and shuddered again with the cold_. Alright, I have to do this_.

She gently opened the window, trying not to make any noise. She pulled her body in, but a cool breeze came with it. Sam froze as she saw Freddie instinctively grab the blanket and cover himself with it. Sam reached back and closed the window before another draft could come through. Freddie had taken up most of the bed, but there was a little bit of room on the side that she thought she could squeeze into. She reasoned to herself, _I'm only going to be here long enough to get warm. I'll be gone before he wakes up._ She slowly made her way to the side of the bed and sat down as gentle as possible. The last thing she wanted to do was wake him. Knowing him, he'd wake up screaming. She lay down as close to the edge as possible. The only way she would fit is if she lay on her side. _Bed hog!_

She carefully balanced herself on the edge facing the window, but she was still really close to him. She could actually feel the heat radiating off of his body. The warmth felt good, but the closeness made her nervous she'd wake him. She reached back to grab some of the blankets. She carefully pulled them toward her, but the blanket wasn't the only thing that came. Freddie's arm snaked around her waist as he buried his nose in her hair. Sam's eyes went wide as her heart started racing wildly. _Spooning? Seriously Benson? Oh, you so __**better**__ be asleep or I'll make sure you get the knife and fork, too! _She could hear him barely snoring behind her. She tried to push his hand off of her, but it only succeeded in making him cuddle up more and let out a contented sigh. Sam yawned heavily. _Gah! I am __**way**__ too tired to fight this right now._ Her shivering was becoming a little less violent, now. She was starting to feel the warmth of Freddie's body melt the iciness that ran though her bones. _Alright, Geek Squad, I forgive you this time._ She laid still and listened to the pattern of his breathing. Soon her breathing matched his, and before long, she too had fallen asleep.

**

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**

Ok, this was a looong chapter, but look…The first Seddie Moment! At least I think it's Seddie. Does it count if one of them is asleep? There's a lot more from here on out. I like how she's so tired, she's giving in…yeah, right, tired! Uh, huh!

**Obviously, this was part of the Goldilocks storyline. I wanted to have a chance to write more than just Freddie and Sam. So are the characters still in character (didn't know how else to say that)? I know I have Sam a little giggly in places, and I turned Spencer into a screamer. Any loves? hates? Let me know. **

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**FYI: I had a hard time naming this chapter, so I kind of stuck Suppertime in as a placeholder. It reminded me of Snoopy from "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown." I could totally imagine Sam singing that song (minus the dog food parts though) like her theme song. It made me laugh, so I kept it.**

Coming soon: Mmmm. She didn't plan on falling asleep. Is he going to catch her in the morning? Warning: The next couple chapters are going to start earning their T rating.


	6. Stuck

**WHOA! You guys rocked the reviews! Thanks so much! It was cool seeing how different the favorite parts were. Funny, some of your favorites were actually last minute changes. Good thing I edit, huh? I have one more chapter ready to go here, so I'll post that before taking a couple days off. It's been an unusually busy week. Gotta catch up some stuff. **

**So...I just realized the last chapter was 4000 words exactly. Wierd, huh? And you guys sat through that? I'm impressed! I'll make this one a little short(er) (Psht, ya right, me do short? The only thing short about me is my attention span...oh look, a penny!) **

**Oh, yeah. T rating alert here for a tiny bit of nudity...**

**Let me see---Once upon a time I owned iCarly. They lived in my backyard and played with my cat. Then one day this big whig TV producer guy named Dan Schneider came and said, "Oh, come with me, I'll give you a fancy loft apartment in the land of Nickelodeon, and you can star in your own web show, and have thousands of adoring fans, and people will write stories about you and give you guys cute little couple names like Seddie and Creddie." So he put them in his pocket and ran away from my house with them...and then I woke up! For a minute I thought it was real, but then I remembered...Silly me, I don't have a cat. : (**

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Sunlight streamed lightly through the window onto his sleeping face. As Freddie turned over to avoid the intrusion, his hand landed with a thud on something solid but soft next to him. He opened his eyes slowly and saw her face glowing in the sunlight. Her eyes were closed and her lips were slightly parted. He could hear her breath lightly escape in time with the rise and fall of her chest. _Wake up Freddie, this a dream. She's not here...but it seems so real._

"Sam?" He tested, but she didn't wake. Instead she turned her back to him, and her golden hair fanned out behind her in a cascade of curls that smelled like Coconut Cream Pie. _Of course she'd smell like food,_ he smiled to himself. _This can't be a dream…can it? _He needed to wake her, to talk to her, to see if this was real. He nervously reached out to touch her shoulder.

RIIIINNGG!!! The silence of the room was shattered by the sound of the alarm clock. He quickly turned over to shut it off. _Which stupid button is it?_ When he finally got the alarm shut off, he turned again to wake her…but she wasn't there. Only the blanket covered the spot where he had seen her before. _Maybe it was a dream…_

Sam hid quietly under Freddie's bed. After a few silent moments, she heard Freddie sigh, and the mattress springs creak above her as Freddie got up. She watched his bare feet pad across the floor, and the heavenly smell of bacon wafted through the door as he opened it. Just before the door closed, she could see Mr. Shay cooking breakfast in the kitchen. _Oh sweet heavenly bacon!_ Her stomach let out a loud growl._ OK, Calm down Herbie, we'll get you some of the Turkey Jerkey. Now to get to the SUV..._

She quickly crawled out from under the bed and went over to the window._ It's only a few yards, I'll just…_ She reached the window saw that Spencer was already at the SUV. He was looking for the keys, which, luckily, she had left on the seat. _Ugh, what next! _She stood hidden from Spencer's view trying to calculate her next move when she heard the bedroom door start to open. She quickly ducked back under the bed. Freddie's voice called from just outside the door. "Smells great, sir. Let me change real quick and I'll be ready to go."

Sam waited as he quickly threw the covers back into place. _Weenie! Even on "guys weekend", he's still a Mama's Boy! _Once Freddie finished, he reached under the bed for his bag. He missed the duffle by nearly a foot and almost caught Sam's nose instead. He began waving his arms back and forth trying to reach the bag. He finally pulled his hand away, but Sam was startled when he placed one knee on the floor in front of her. _Don't you dare look here Freddork, or I give you a wedgie so deep, you'll still be trying to dig out at your kid's graduation! _Freddie put his hand under the bed once more. She quickly pulled the bag toward his grasp. "There you are," he said as he pulled the bag up onto the bed.

Sam buried her head in her arms and breathed a sigh of relief. She could hear him rummaging through his bag at the end of the bed. "Where is that tan hoodie? I know I packed it," he grumbled. _Neener, Neener_. _I know where it is! _Sam smiled to herself and sniffed the collar of the pilfered hoodie she was wearing. _Mmm, April Fresh_!

He pulled a few more items out of the bag then shoved it back under the bed. She scooted quickly out of the way, but was now crammed at the edge of the bed, with very little room to move. The duffel was tight up against her left so she turned her head to the right to give her room to breathe. She had just shifted into a comfortable position when something dropped right next to her face... There was a lump of navy blue checkered fabric, and some kind of white fabric with elastic and…_Oh, My, G! It's Dork-Boy's antibacterial underpants! Ew, Ew, Ew!_ She raised her head up and away from the offending fabric just quick enough to see Freddie standing there…completely naked! Luckily His back was to her. He was bent over putting on his swim trunks.

Sam let out an involuntary squeak, and Freddie quickly turned her direction. She put her hand over her mouth to keep from screaming out again, then buried her head in her arms. Her heart was beating so hard, the sound of it filled her ears_. I didn't see anything. I didn't see anything. I didn't see anything,_ she repeated to herself to calm her thoughts_._ After a few seconds Freddie finally turned back (presumably from looking out the window) and continued getting dressed.

Her breathing only headed back to normal after she saw Freddie slip on his sandals and head out to the kitchen. When the door closed, she let out a deep breath of relief. She twisted her face in disgust as she flicked the underpants away and crawled out from under the bed again. _Ugh! It's a good thing I haven't eaten breakfast yet, Benson._ She went back to the window; no Spencer in sight. "Woo hoo, now's my chance."

She raised the window just high enough to climb through, then pushed her legs out. Her feet had just dropped down on the other side when the window suddenly came crashing back down and caught her hair in the windowsill. She was stuck, She couldn't turn her head to see the window, so she had to contort a bit to get to it. It took all of her strength to reach behind her and push up on the window. She felt like she was pulling her hair out of her head but she managed to get it up the inch or so she needed to get out. She pulled herself free, just as Freddie burst through the door to check on the noise. She quickly ducked down under the windowsill. If he looked down, she was caught! Freddie glanced curiously at the opened window, then he looked outside for any clue to the noise. The only thing he saw was a single strand of blond hair hanging from the open windowpane. He pulled it off the window and held it up. He was instantly reminded of the smell of _Coconut cream pie._ He stared out the window, looking out toward the trees and the water. With no man or animal in sight, he pushed the window shut and slid the lock.

Once clear, Sam headed to the shelter of the SUV and grabbed the handle. _Locked! Grrr, Spencer! _She tried the other doors. _All locked? Alright, the total lack of trust around this place is really starting to get on my nerve! _She attempted her Uncle Carmine's method for jimmying the lock, but it was taking forever. _Duh, Sam. Maybe this why he's doing 10-20 in Cook County right now, stupid Uncle Carmine_. Before she could finish, she heard someone coming out of the cabin. She made a break for the nearby trees and waited.

All three of the guys were headed out. "We should get more bait when we pick up the fishing licenses at the bait shop," Mr. Shay said. "We'll pick up ice and drinks while we're there, too, that way we can leave as soon as we get back." They all took their places in the SUV. She could hear Spencer singing as they drove away, "Goin' Fishin' with my Granddad, Gonna catch me a mess of fish. Goin' Fishin' with my Granddad and they'll make a tasty dish. Gonna' Grill 'em up, fry 'em up, barbecue their guts, gonna put 'em in some stew. Goin' Fishin with my Granddad. Can I bring some home for you?"

Sam waited for them to disappear before she made her move back to the house. She took out her emergency bobby pin again to open the door but as she ducked down, she could hear a faint beeping from inside. _Great, **now** the geniuses figure out the alarm! _She peeked in the window. On the kitchen counter, just a short 10 feet away from the window, sat a plate of freshly made ham sandwiches and a plate of leftover bacon and pancakes right next to it. _Who, in the name of pudding, has leftover bacon? _Sam felt her tummy rumble as she began to dream of what the bacon tasted like. "Down boy, we can't get to those," she said patting her stomach. She was going to have to starve until they got back.

Sam looked around for another place to wait. The shimmer of the water caught her attention, and she looked around to the boat down at the dock. _That'll do._ The boat was much larger when she was next to it, and obviously well taken care of. It was shiny white with navy blue trim on the outside. She climbed aboard to explore the vessel. The front (or bow) had a little deck area just large enough for a few people. Behind that, there was a captain's seat and a passenger's seat with a dark aqua colored canopy over each. There was a cutout between the canopies that allowed you to walk from stem to stern. The seats were a white leather-like material with an aqua marble stripe through the center. In the aft part of the boat there were two benches with the same white and aqua cushions on each, and a large empty metal storage trunk that took up the space between them.

Sam stretched out on one of the benches. They were more cushy than she expected, and to her surprise they were removable. _I wonder if these float like airplane cushions?_ She was just getting into relaxing when she saw the SUV pull up again. She ducked down, then crawled her way over to the storage trunk to watch. Mr. Shay was going into the cabin while Freddie and Spencer were heading straight for the boat with arms loaded with supplies. She was looking around for a place to hide, until they went back up for more. Her hand brushed against the storage box; _Well, at least it's bigger than the suitcase! _She raised the lid quickly and shimmied in with her head and shoulders first. She pulled the rest of her body in then twisted to make room for her legs. She had just gotten her foot in and the lid closed when she heard the thunk of the tackle box hit the deck.

"Hey, Freddie," she heard Spencer's voice. "I'll stay here and set up, and you go help Granddad bring the rest of the stuff down." "Aye, Aye, Captain!" Freddie laughed. _No, he did not just say that._ _Such a Nub!_ Once again, Sam found herself crammed into an uncomfortable situation with no escape in sight. She frowned as she listened to Spencer moving things around her. _I'm beginning to think being an invisible Ninja is too much work!_

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**Well, she's not exactly found, yet, but she's definitely on his mind, isn't she? I'm starting to agree with Sam at this point. Being a Ninja is Hard Work!**

**FYI: There is really a shampoo by Philosophy that smells like Coconut Cream Pie. **

**On a personal note: I am so psyched. I have had the busiest month ever on this site. I actually posted 3 stories (including the 5 chapters of this one). Because of you fantabulous people, for the month of April, I recieved nearly 2400 viewers to my stories, and over 1300 to just this story alone. I don't know if that's good numbers or not, but I'm completely stoked! So I give all of you a big round of applause! (imagine screaming fans, cheerleaders and a guy in a chicken suit here)**

**Next up: My favorite chapter to write. We see Curious Freddie, Sensitive Spencer, Non-Ninja Sam, Angry Mr. Shay, and a special appearance by Sergio, Gil and Hazel (ok, maybe not that special). **


	7. Fishing

**'Allo, I won't spend a lot of time here. This is a really long chapter, (we're talking over 5300 words-YIKES!) but I think it reads pretty fast. I'm posting a little earlier than planned, but Yay. **

**I'm giving this chapter a very mild T-rating just for awkward hormonal...whatevers. **

**Thanks again to all of you who are still here following along. I feel we may have lost some along the way, kittens. They just don't know what it's like to be a ninja! (sigh) So, grab yourself a yogurt, a little popcorn, glass of iced tea or whatever floats your boat...give yourself a stretch... cause here we go...**

**Oh, and nope, still don't iCarly, but if I did, I'd share them with all of you. (But only every other Tuesday)**

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Mr. Shay fired up the boat and Sam jumped from the sound; she was obviously sitting over top of the motor. The vibrations bouncing off of the metal box around her echoed until the noise was almost unbearable. As the speed picked up, so did the noise. She pressed her hands tight against her ears. Without being able to use her hands for support, her body was being tossed around in the small metal box. Her stomach was growing more nauseous with each wave. She never planned on being out on the water in the first place, now she was stuck in this trunk for who knows how long. _Ok, being an invisible Ninja, now officially sucks!_

Thank Cheese the boat finally stopped. She uncovered her ears and stretched out what little she could. and took deep breaths to calm her stomach. She could hear them moving around and talking just outside, so she braved a quick peek. Mr. Shay was setting up his pole in the front, while Spencer was helping Freddie with his next to the trunk. Spencer was doing most of the work, because Freddie didn't really seem to be concentrating. Sam quietly dropped the lid before they could spot her. She'd have to be content to listen to what was going on. Freddie finally got his line out into the water, and sat down on the bench next to the trunk.

Spencer ran up front to grab a couple bottles of juice. He handed Freddie a bottle and looked at the expression on his face.

"That's a pretty serious face for someone who's supposed to be having fun. What's up Freddo?"

Freddie took a deep breath before finally deciding to talk it over. "Spencer, can I ask you a question?

"Of course" Spencer said as he took a drink.

Freddie took a long time trying to find the right words. "Have you ever had a dream that felt so real that you physically..."

Spencer's eyes grew wide and choked a little on his drink. "Wait, I think I know where this is going."

"You do?"

Spencer squirmed a bit before he finally settled into what he considered to be a fatherly sitting position. "You see Freddie, it's normal for a boy of a certain age to feel…changes in his body…" Sam nearly burst out of the box in shock. _Huh, whoa!_ _Hold up skippy! EW, No!. Move away! La la la la._

"What!" Freddie shouted. "Spencer, No. It wasn't …ugh. It wasn't that kind of dream." He shook his head before continuing under his breath, "I don't think. No!"

"Oh," Spencer awkwardly continues, "so you _don't_ need to change your sheets?"

"Spencer!"

"Ok, Sorry. I just thought you were asking about…"

"No," Freddie quickly interrupts. "I got that part covered thank you."

Sam relaxed a little knowing what _wasn't_ topic of conversation, but she was definitely interested now. _What does the dork mean he's got that part covered?_ Spencer took a long drink from his bottle then cleared his throat. "So...you had a dream…? He started for Freddie.

Freddie looked at Spencer who had relaxed into conversation mode again. "I had a dream that someone was in my bed last night and…" Sam held her breath. _Uh oh, here we go!_

"Wait," Spencer interrupted. "Like a dangerous stranger someone, or a _certain_ someone."

"A certain someone, I guess."

Spencer cleared his throat. "And you're sure about the sheets?"

"Spencer!" Freddie yelled again.

"Sorry, please continue." Spencer took another drink trying to get rid of his embarrassment.

"Anyway, I turned over in my sleep and felt something warm next to me, so I opened my eyes and I saw her. She was lying there with her eyes closed and her hair across the pillow next to me. I could smell her hair; It smelled like Galini's Pie. It was just like her." Sam pulled a strand of hair and to smell. Her shampoo did smell like Galini's. _Mmm, pie_. _Man, I'm so hungry_. She listened as he continued. "I whispered her name, but she just sighed and turned over." _He did? Hmm, I didn't hear._

"I didn't think I was asleep," Freddie continued, "I tried to touch her, but the alarm went off. I reached behind me to turn it off and when I turned back again she wasn't there."

"Well…" Spencer said as he tapped the side of his bottle. "That's… a pretty vivid dream."

"But what does it mean."

Spencer's composure became slightly more rigid. "That all depends…Fredward." He turned to look at Freddie and raised his eyebrow. "Do I know this particular dream girl? Hmmm?"

Freddie felt uncomfortable under Spencer's gaze. Spencer had never called him by his full name before. "Uhh…" Suddenly there was a tug on Spencer's line. "You got one!"

Spencer jumped up and grabbed the pole. "Freddie, get your camera! The last time I went fishing with Granddad his fish ate mine before we got back. This time I'm gonna have proof!"

Everyone else's attention was on Spencer's catch, so Sam was sure no one would see her. She kept the lid propped to sneak peeks at the action outside. Spencer spent the next 10 minutes reeling in the fish before he finally got it out of the water, and Freddie got the whole thing on camera. The fish was easily 3 feet long and was flopping around like…well, a fish. Spencer grabbed at the fish but couldn't quite hold it. He tried lying on top of it to keep it in one place, but the fish kept slapping him in the face with its tail.

"This is Epic!" Freddie laughed. He still had the camera rolling on Spencer's fish frenzy. Sam had pulled her phone out to snap a few pics as well. Mr. Shay was barely able to stop laughing enough to help. "Here, get him into the trunk." He and Spencer picked up the fish and backed over to the trunk while Freddie kept filming. They both reached back to flip up the lid, but Sam burst out before either touched it. _No way am I sharing with that crazy thing!_ She, dropped her phone, jumped out of the trunk and ran straight into Freddie with such a force that she fell backwards over the side of the boat. Spencer and Mr. Shay dumped the fish into the trunk and slammed the lid. Spencer and Mr. Shay both sat on the lid to the trunk while the fish beat away inside. In all the excitement, they didn't hear the splash as Sam hit the water.

"Excellent catch, Spencer." Mr. Shay said slightly out of breath.

Freddie heard a small splash just off the boat then turned his camera to see what was in the water.

"Uh, Guys," he said chuckling. "I think we may need to throw another line over here."

Spencer and Mr. Shay leaned over the side to see a soggy Sam bobbing in the water. She sheepishly waved up to them. "Hey there, how's it going?"

Freddie laughed and put the camera on the bench. He then held out his hand for her to grab. Mr. Shay went up to get some towels while Spencer helped pull her over the side. "What are you doing here, Sam?" He asked as Freddie wrapped a towel around her.

"Well, you see" she said through chattering teeth, "my cousin's a mermaid and I just came for a visit." Spencer looked back at the water for just a split second before Smiling at Sam's joke.

Mr. Shay came back with a couple more towels. "That water's freezing, young lady. We need to get you dry quick."

They threw another towel around her and sat her down on the bench. Spencer took off her shoes and socks, "You had my lucky socks?!"

Hey finished dried her legs and feet, then wrung out the socks. "The Seattle Blades and I are very disappointed in you, Sam." He frowned as he and put them in the sun. He and Mr. Shay went back up front while Freddie continued to help.

"Here." Freddie pulled off the hoodie he was wearing. "Take that off, I'll give you this one." Sam took the wet one off and handed it to him. He looked at the wet hoodie as he laid it out in the sun. "Hey, that was one of my favorites!"

"Oh, yeah. Thanks for letting me borrow it." She pulled the dry one over her head. "Hey Fredward. Pull this down and hold it for a minute, will you?"

"What?"

"Just come here," she said as she pulled him next to her.

"Now grab the sides and pull it down." He reached his left hand around her then grabbed the bottoms of the hoodie. With both hands and pulled it down to her hips, leaving her arms snug inside.

"Good, hold it there." She ordered.

Freddie held the bottom down as asked. He watched with curiosity while Sam wriggled around inside the hoodie a few times, before finally pulling her arms through. She then reached in through the neck hole and pulled her wet t-shirt back up over her head. "Ahh, Thanks Freddington," she sighed. She tried to get up but couldn't move. "You can let go now, dork." He immediately let go.

She was about to lay the wet shirt out with the others, but stopped. Once more she pulled her arms out of her sleeves, wriggled around a bit then pulled her arms back through the sleeves again. Freddie chuckled at her impromptu little dance, but was surprised to see she wasn't quite done. She reached her left hand into her right sleeve and pulled out something white…with straps. Freddie suddenly felt like he was watching some perverted magic trick. She finally freed the item from her sleeve and threw it on top of the pile. It was her bra! He had no idea he was gaping at her until she smacked him on the back of the head…hard.

"Eyes back in your head, Benson."

She carefully laid the clothes out in the sun. As she stepped back, her hands hit her legs.

"Great, my shorts are soaked!"

She pulled down the bottom of the hoodie. It covered to her legs, but not very far. She saw one last dry towel on the deck. She grabbed it and wrapped it around her waist. She started to unbutton her shorts, but noticed Freddie sitting there with his mouth open. He was watching with amazement at her undercover dressing skills.

"Uh, Benson," she glared. "A little privacy. Turn around. And no peeking or I'll poke out your eyeballs with a fish hook and use them as bait."

Freddie turned his back and looked off the stern of the boat while she quickly removed her shorts. She tossed the sopping bundle at his head and laughed. "Done."

He laid the shorts out on the bench and then went to pick up his camera. Oops_, I left it recording_. He was about to warn Sam, but then he caught sight of her. _Oh my, what a glory to behold_, he laughed to himself. He turned the camera on her instead.

She was pulling her hair into a bun, but her wild curls still left stray hairs poking out all over her head. Instead of her usual shorts, she was wearing a skirt made from a towel. There were strange looking fish all over it, and I heart Yakima printed across her hip. She was stretched out across the seats to warm herself in the sun. The towel fell above her knees showing her legs. They were, for some reason, covered in bruises and in desperate need of some sun. To top it off she was being swallowed up in a terribly oversize hoodie…HIS hoodie…that was sitting on girl skin…without a bra! He mentally slapped himself knowing how much harder she would have done, if she only knew what he was thinking. Shaking himself from his daydream, he turned off the camera and joined the others.

An hour later Sam woke up hungry. She checked to see if her clothes were dry. Most of the clothes had drifted into the shade and were still wet. The shorts were almost dry, though, so she put them on. She lifted the lid to peek at the fish in the trunk. Now that it had stopped moving, it was definitely bigger than she remembered. _Good job Spencer!_ She pulled out her phone. It had been beaten to death in the trunk by the fish, and now had some scaly slime all over it. She wandered up to the front just in time to see Spencer helping Mr. Shay take another fish off of his line. It was much smaller than the other fish: only about a foot long.

"Alright! You guys caught another one."

"Hey, look who's up!" Spencer beamed as he saw her. "Feeling better?"

"Yeah, all dried off and feeling much better…and hungry." Freddie reached into the cooler and tossed her a sandwich and a bottle of juice.

"Ah, perfect! Thanks." She opened the bottle to take a drink. "So I just peeked at Gil back there. Is it alright to keep him in that?"

"Gil?" Mr. Shay asked.

"The fish in the box," Freddie answered.

"Oh, well as long as he's not in the sun, he should be fine." Mr. Shay said as he freed the hook from his fish. "When I put this guy…"

"Sergio." Sam quickly threw in.

Mr. Shay looked at Sam and then back at the fish.

"Ok," he laughed. "When I put _Sergio_ back there I'll see if I need to put water on them."

He grabbed Sergio and walked back to the trunk. It was obvious that he was not aware of the peculiarities that came with being associated with Sam because the others could hear him muttering under his breath, "Gil and Sergio! Naming the stupid fish…who cares what the name is when it's swimming in my belly…"

"Hey Freddie, this got stuck in with Gil," she said as she handed him her phone. "Any hope of salvaging it?" Freddie wrinkled his nose in disgust as he took if from her with only two fingers. He tried to turn it on, but it just made a weak whiny noise.

"Probably not," he said wiping his hand. "We should be able to save the SIM card though, so you won't have to lose everything." Sam smiled a bit relieved.

"So Sam…" Spencer said as he pat the empty seat next to him. "How are Carly and Grandma doing?"

"Don't know, I haven't talked to her," she said as she climbed up toward the bow.

"Then...how did you know where we were?" Freddie asked.

"Yeah. Come to think of it, this isn't really on any bus routes." Spencer looked confused. "How exactly did you get here?"

Sam suddenly felt as caught as Gil and Sergio. She shoved a huge bite of sandwich in her mouth and answered, "Ah phwoad whi hue gi."

Mr. Shay sat back down and looked over at Freddie as if the boy spoke Sam-ese. "What did she just say?"

Freddie just shrugged

Spencer was still staring at Sam. "I think she said she came with us." Sam lowered her eyes and shoved in another bite.

"Well that's just impossible," Mr. Shay dismissed. "You were in the apartment with Carly when we came downstairs to get my stuff, and I was with the truck until we left. There's no way you could get in without me seeing you."

"Well…" Sam picked off a piece of the crust and threw it over the side. "I didn't exactly _get_ in; more like I was put in…by Spencer"

Spencer looked completely confused now. "How could I have put you in if I never saw you until now?" Sam bit her lips and raised her eyebrows instead of answering. "Where were you hiding Sam?"

Sam threw the rest of the crust overboard. "Let's just say you guys should be very careful while you're out here. You wouldn't want to get _hurt_ or anything."

Freddie shouted, "No Way!" Everyone turned to him, waiting for him to explain his epiphany. "She was hiding in the First Aid kit, right? I was surprised when Spencer said it was so heavy."

"That was you!" Spencer pointed at her. "Whew, I'm kind of relieved. It was a little scary thinking of Mrs. B being strong enough to lift that thing." He looked over at Freddie, "No offense, man."

"Wait," Mr. Shay interrupted. "Do you mean to tell me that you rode all the way here locked inside a suitcase? Do you have any idea how dangerous that was, young lady?

Sam just sat with a stone cold face, barely listening as he continued to yell at her. "You could have been dropped or thrown across the truck. No wonder you have so many bruises all over you. And that sheriff! Do you know how much trouble you could have been in if he found you…how much trouble _we_ could have been in? What would your mother think if…"

Sam suddenly gripped the edge of her seat until her knuckles turned white. Freddie and Spencer both looked up at Mr. Shay in alarm. They knew you never talked about Sam's mom. Spencer held up his hands to stop Mr. Shay, but he just kept going about what kind of horrible parent would let their kid just run off without checking on her.

"…And the next time you think about doing something as stupid as locking yourself in a suitcase to…"

"Stop, Granddad?" Spencer finally yelled.

Mr. Shay looked at Spencer and Freddie's faces. They were looking at Sam with an odd expression; almost like…compassion. He didn't understand why, but knew he needed to calm down. His voice softened as he continued. "And the next time you think about doing something like this, Sam, just ask. There's plenty of room. You don't have to stow away."

Sam's grip lightened, but she still wouldn't look at him. "Besides," he continued." "I'd much rather be out here trying to catch Ramon or Percy, than in the emergency room."

Sam only managed to hold her straight face for a couple seconds before she chuckled, "Ramon and Percy?"

Mr. Shay chuckled with her. "So, young lady, ever been sea-fishing?" He handed her his pole and gave her a few quick pointers.

For the next 20 minutes they all sat back enjoying the quiet and the rocking of the boat. The silence was broken when Freddie's cell phone rang. "It's my mom. Here Mr. Shay, you can take this pole."

Mr. Shay took the pole and Freddie went back to talk to his mom. Sam couldn't help eavesdropping on the conversation. It was clear that Mrs. B didn't know that her precious baby boy was on a boat in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.

"Yes Mom, I'm keeping my feet dry…Yes, Mom two coats of sunscreen every hour… Yes, mom. I know, I know…Mom, Mom, I love you and I'll see you tomorrow…Good-bye Mom…Good-bye Mom…I will, Goodbye."

He pounded the button to end the call and went back to the empty seat next to Sam. He kicked his feet up on the edge and turned to face the sun. He could see her out of the corner of his eye; she was smirking at him. "What?"

She raised her eyebrows. "Oh nothing. Looks like I'm not the only one holding back from Mommy. Admit it, Benson, I'm starting to rub off on…Whoa!" She stopped when she felt a tug on her line.

"I can never be as devious as you, Puckett." He looked up just as Sam was being jerked forward by another tug on her line. "Whoa!" He jumped up and grabbed his video camera.

Sam stood up. "Uh, guys, I think I got something," she called nervously. The others jumped up to see what was going on. Spencer was about to take the pole but Mr. Shay stopped him.

"Stop pulling, Sam. Let him take a little line before you reel him in." Mr. Shay instructed calmly. "The idea is to tire him out, not the other way around."

She let the fish play on the line for several minutes. After a while, though, she started to feel like she was losing her grip. "My hands are getting tired, guys. I need some help, here." Mr. Shay held Spencer back and called for Freddie. "My boy, get in there."

Freddie handed the camera to Spencer. "What do I do?"

"She's got to keep her hand tight on the reel or it'll take off again. Come around behind her." Mr. Shay pulled Freddie into position while giving instructions. "Now grab the pole just above her hand." Freddie reached out his left hand and took a section of the pole above hers. "Good," Mr. Shay continued. "Now Sam, keep hold of the reel. Freddie with your right hand, cover hers until you have control of the reel. Then she can let go."

Freddie had just put his right arm around Sam to grasp the reel when there was another violent jerk on the line. The pole slid a bit in Sam's hand, but Freddie was able to catch it, and her, as they were pulled forward. She held tight to the reel to keep it from spinning too far, and he covered her hand to help hold it tight.

"I'm left handed, Sam. I've got the pole, but you're stronger at the reel. Like it or not, looks like we're doing this together." Sam smiled and put on her game face. "Let's get him, Fredders. Grrrr." She growled.

Freddie planted his feet firmly on the ground. Sam leaned into him and put one foot on the rail to give her leverage. Together they worked to bring the fish in. Pull and reel, pull and reel, pull and reel. Spencer kept the camera rolling on their efforts and Mr. Shay cheered them on. They had steadily worked the fish just a few feet from the boat.

"How you holding up Sam?" Freddie asked softly in her ear.

"Fine." She answered as they gave another pull. "Why?"

"I'll make you a deal. Since you started this catch, you should finish it." She looked at him over her shoulder. "You finish reeling it in, and I'll take the hook out."

Sam smiled, "Deal" She turned back to the task of reeling in the fish. "You're mine, sucker!" she yelled as she pulled harder on the pole.

Freddie unwrapped his arms from Sam and made sure she was steady on her feet. The fish was still fighting, but much less than before. As she reeled it to the edge of the boat, Freddie reached for the line and pulled it up over the side.

If flopped all around the deck, but they could tell it was somewhere between the size of Spencer's and the size of Mr. Shay's fish. True to his word, Freddie took the hook out and let it finish it's flopping.

"So what are you calling this one?" Mr. Shay asked.

"Hazel," she said immediately as if the answer should have been obvious.

"How do you figure it's a …Never mind, I don't want to know." Mr. Shay gave up and walked away.

Once it calmed down Sam bent down and picked up the fish. "Aren't you beautiful, Hazel?" Freddie had taken the camera from Spencer and laughed as he filmed her making fish faces at Hazel.

"Well Grizzlies," Mr. Shay called. "Looks like we definitely have enough for dinner, lets head in." Spencer and Freddie both growled in agreement. Sam looked at Hazel and let out a little growl.

Freddie ran ahead to pick up the towels and clothes from the trunk before turning to film Sam walking up with the fish. She held it away from her as Freddie opened the trunk. "Man, she looks heavy. Good job, Sam."

"You too, Fredward," She grinned.

She put Hazel in with the other two fish. "Hazel," she said, "meet Gil and Sergio. I'm sure you'll find you have lots in common." Freddie laughed and filmed all three fish inside.

"Look, Sam. It's a Papa Fish, Mama Fish, and Baby Fish." Sam groaned and rolled her eyes.

"Hey guys," Spencer called. "Let's go."

They closed the trunk and took their seats. The ride back took about 15 minutes. Sam could see the beautiful coastline and feel the spray from the ocean and the wind against her face. _This is definitely better than ninja style_.

When they reached the dock, they quickly unloaded the gear and took it up to the cabin.

As they came back for the fish, a neighbor came by walking his dog. "So did you catch anything?" he asked.

"Did we!" Spencer said as he lifted his catch. "Meet Gil." The neighbor nodded in approval while Mr. Shay pulled out the other two.

"I caught Sergio here, and this is Hazel."

Sam beamed. "I caught Hazel."

The neighbor congratulated her then turned to Freddie. "So what did you catch?" he asked.

"I caught her," Freddie laughed motioning to Sam.

Sam punched Freddie on the arm and yelled "You Wish!"

Freddie leaned in and whispered to the neighbor."They wouldn't let me throw her back."

Sam started to go after Freddie, but Spencer caught her by her belly and held her next to him. "No killing before dinner, kids. Someone has to do the dishes."

"Hey, would you mind taking a picture of us with our catch." Mr. Shay asked the neighbor.

"Sure."

Freddie showed him how to work the camera phone while Sam, Spencer and Mr. Shay held up their respective fish. Freddie got in line for the picture as the man readied the camera.

"Wait," Sam stopped. She turned toward Freddie. "Put your arm around my waist."

"Why?"

"Just do it!" she yelled. Freddie nervously put his arm around her waist as she reached up and put her arm around his neck. "Alright Dude," she yelled to the man. "Give us a count of three before you snap the pic."

"Grizzlies on three," cheered Spencer.

"One." The man started his count and everyone smiled.

"Two" Sam whispered to Freddie, "Catch Me." She jumped up and lifted her legs as Freddie caught them in his other arm.

"Three." "GRIZZLIES" they all yelled as the man snapped the pic.

"What'd you do that for?" Freddie asked and dropped her to her feet. Sam gave Spencer her fish then pulled herself away. "You said you caught me. I just wanted to make sure you were telling the truth."

Freddie gave her a smirk then went to get the phone from the neighbor. "Thanks." They started to follow the others up to the cabin then Sam turned around and hopped back onto the boat. She grabbed the towels and her clothes and threw them at Freddie. He looked down to see her bra sitting on top of the pile.

_She still hadn't put that on yet?_ Sam jumped back down and saw that he was staring at the bra, then at her chest. She grabbed the bundle from him and growled. "Eyes, Benson!"

Alright, so maybe this was Sam, but he was still a teenage boy with teenage hormones. He probably should have felt guilty, or scared, but you can't expect to put something like this in front of a guy and not have his mind take over. Ok, well maybe not _mind_. He quickly looked away and stealthily adjusted his tightening shorts. _But to be on the safe side_, _maybe I better keep my eyes straight ahead until we get back_ _to the cabin._

* * *

**Well it only took 6 chapters to get here, but they finally discovered the 'Sam-in-the-Box'! **

**I absolutely adored writing this chapter! In fact it was this little scenario that started the whole idea. (I don't know if you could call it a plot) There were so many parts I liked in this chapter, but you know me...I want to hear yours, first. Go ahead, let me have it! **


	8. Under the Diamond Canopy

Hang on Coffee Noodles! The new chapter is here! Take a deep breath and don't turn purple! Hi, Autumn (high pitched voice) Thank You! Krissy, save me some iced tea? Oh, and Drown-in-Sequins, sincerest thanks Chica, you're totally cool!

I had so much fun replying to all your reviews this time! (come on, everybody! Worldwide Group Hug!) Your unanimous favorite part actually surprised me (the picture). But all of the reviews were fantastic!

Moving on: Lets see...Oh, the game of 20 questions...I know it's actually different, but let's pretend this is my version born for this moment...Mmm Kay? Oh, and Diamond Canopy (Title) is from the Incubus song Anti-Gravity Love Song. "Simply Choose your destination from the Diamond Canopy and we'll be there." Always loved that visual.

In honor of Cinco de Mayo, I am going to attempt to do the disclaimer in Spanish: iCarly no está mina. Usted puede agradecer Dan y Nickelodeon por ellos. Quizás disfrutarían de una torta cocida al horno fresca o de un masaje del pie. Puedo escribir solamente sobre ellos. En lugar, acabo de querer su revisión. Gracias

Now, on with the show!

* * *

Now that she was no longer hiding, Mr. Shay named Sam an honorary "Grizzly" (as if he had a choice), and she became part of the routine. They washed up and started making dinner. Spencer and Freddie took on the salad and side dishes. Mr. Shay taught Sam how to fillet and barbecue the fish. Trusting Sam with fire and a knife? Now Freddie really wasn't sure if Mr. Shay was brave or just insane. The whole dinner was one of the happiest times Sam could remember...even without her best friend being there. She kind of missed Carly at the moment.

She sat listening to Mr. Shay's navy stories in wrapt attention. She was impressed at how he stole Buddy's girl, his car, and his dog, and still managed to become his best friend. They all laughed when the barbecue caught fire just as Spencer walked by. Mr. Shay taught Sam how to dance the Jitterbug, and Freddie was happy because as long as Sam was sitting next to him, he wouldn't have to wonder where his food went. Actually, she made him blush when she complimented him on his roasted baby potatoes and veggies. Nobody had ever gotten her to eat Brussels sprouts before, and she had 2 helpings. The fish, she had to admit, was amazing. They gave a toast to Hazel, Sergio and Gil, who "would have been proud to be part of such a great party."

Spencer and Mr. Shay decided that as a reward for all their hard work, Sam and Freddie could skip the clean up duty. Taking full advantage of their reprieve, they decided to go for a walk and ended up back at the boat. They climbed aboard and pulled the cushions off of the benches so they could lie on deck and watch the stars. Sam bent down to grab the life preservers to use for pillows, and let out a loud groan.

"Man, I am so stiff," she said arching her back.

"It's no wonder," Freddie laughed. You've stuffed yourself into a suitcase, then the storage box, you fell backwards over the side of the boat, and fought with a fish. I'm surprised your body's not on strike!"

Sam tossed the life preservers with the rest of the cushions. "I've put it through worse, that no reason for it to…" She felt a warm squeeze on her shoulder. "…Oh, Holy Mother of Pearl, what was that?"

Freddie stood back quickly. He suddenly felt in mortal danger. "I… massaged your shoulder," he said timidly. "Sorry, I …"

"Do it again!" She cut him off.

Freddie smiled and relaxed a bit. "Here, sit down."

When she sat down in front of him, he gathered her hair and tossed it over her shoulder. He placed both hands on her shoulders and squeezed them with his fingers as his thumbs ran up her spine and to her neck. Her tension left in waves as goose bumps set her skin on fire.

"Ohhh…" she moaned. "I take back every mean thing I ever said about you."

Freddie chuckled softly, "That good, huh?"

"Oh, Man! You have no idea." He hit another sensitive spot that made her jump. "Oh, yeah! That's it. Just keep those magic finger's moving, baby!" she moaned.

Freddie chuckled at the sounds she was making and began working out a knot below her shoulder blade.

"Ow." She felt the moment of pain before the kknot released and pleasure kicked in. "Mmmm. I'd have paid a million dollars for this right here."

Freddie laughed again. "Oh, you would, would you?"

"Don't get too excited, fella. I would've had to borrow it from you first."

"Of course you would," he nodded. "So…why don't we make this interesting. How about 20 questions? I ask you."

"You ask me?" She was definitely curious.

"Yes. And you have to tell the truth!" He added quickly before squeezing her neck.

"Gaahhh…" Her mind went numb as she felt the tension in her neck go right out through the top of her head. "You'll be lucky if I can keep from drooling all over myself let alone answer any questions."

"Well if you don't want to, I could just stop." He lifted his hands and held them just above her shoulders.

"NO!" She shouted. He smiled, put his hands back on her shoulders and continued kneading. "What if you ask something I don't want to answer?"

He frowned just a little, "then the game's over and I'll stop."

"Ten questions," she bargained quickly. "And don't forget I can beat you senseless you if you cross the line."

He smiled again, "Duly noted."

She took a deep breath and braced herself. "Alright, shoot. First question."

Freddie dug his elbow into her ribs trying to work out another tough knot. "Huh, my first question is…why would you subject yourself to this torture just to stay away from home?"

"Cause, it's boring!" She answered like he was stupid.

Freddie dropped his hands to his knees, unsatisfied with her answer.

"Hey," she whined. "Ok, Ok! Ugh." She continued hesitantly, "You know my mom is sort of…crazy." She let out a big calming sigh. "Being around her mood swings and episodes is kind of scary sometimes." She opened her mouth a few times to say more, but stopped. She continued hesitantly. "With my mom, you never know what she's going to do. I'm afraid one of these days she'll do something stupid to hurt herself...or me. I don't want to walk in someday and see that she..." She shook her head to release the image. "Anyway, it's just easier to avoid her, and I thought you were supposed to keep going as long as I answered your dumb questions, Fredworm!"

Freddie had gotten so wrapped up in what Sam was saying that he didn't realize he had stopped massaging. "Oh, Sorry." He continued.

"You wanna know the worst part," she asked as she was rocked back and forth under the pressure of Freddie's fingers. "Sometimes I get really mad at her for being that way, and angry that I got stuck with her for a mother. Not that I'm any better of a daughter, I guess." She let out a small sigh. "I bet you think I'm horrible, don't you?"

"No," he frowned. "I mean, I feel that way about my mom sometimes, so I can only imagine what it's like for you."

"UGH, I'm done with that question!" She shook her body like she was getting rid of a bug. "Look, Benson, I haven't even told Carly this, so if you say anything about that to anyone…"

"I won't." he promised. "I know that was hard for you, and you can trust me. I won't say anything."

"Next Question." She said ending the subject.

"So…ahem," he cleared his throat nervously. "Was that really you I saw in my bed this morning? I mean…I wasn't dreaming, was I." He asked the latter as a statement more than a question.

"Erm," she stalled. "Well, I fell asleep in the SUV last night, but it got really cold. I knew your window wasn't locked, so I snuck in." She smiled to herself, "I only intended to be there long enough to warm up, but then you put..." For some strange reason, she suddenly decided she wanted to keep that memory to herself. 'But, I fell asleep."

Freddie was a little relieved that he hadn't imagined the whole thing. "You suddenly disappeared. Where did you go?"

Sam chuckled, "The alarm woke me up, and I felt you turn over to shut it off, so I slid to the floor and rolled under the bed. I tried to leave, but I got stuck there until you guys started eating breakfast."

The pace of Freddie's fingers slowed as he began to realize something. "That means you were in there when I was changing." He was all of a sudden horrified. "Sam, what did you see?"

"Um, Nothing…" she said slowly. Freddie was slightly relieved until he heard, "except…"

"Except what, Sam?" He commanded.

"Your…butt? I saw you butt!" She winced knowing he would fly off the handle.

"WHAT!"

"I didn't wanna look," she quickly explained. "I _was_ looking the other direction, but then you threw your gross underwear right next to my face, so I turned my head and you were just…_There!_"

Freddie covered his face, absolutely mortified. He was just glad she wasn't facing him to see his humiliation.

"You were pulling up your swim trunks, and it was only for a second," she was trying to calm him. "I really didn't see that much, except…your butt is _really_ white!"

"Oh My God!" he groaned. "I think I'm going to be sick!"

"I know! That's what I said!" She joked, but it obviously wasn't helping the situation.

"You're going to torture me forever with this," he said like a man facing his death.

She turned to look at him. "Believe me, I don't want _anyone_ knowing I saw that! Besides, it's not like I haven't just given you a bunch of dirt to hold over me for the rest of my life!"

Freddie glared at her silently. She did make a point. "Freddie, I won't tell anyone." She reassured. "I swear!" He breathed a sigh of relief. "Feel better now?"

"I guess," he mumbled.

"Good!" She firmly pat his knee then turned her back to him again. "Now let's get back to where we left off, Princess."

He pushed her hair aside and started massaging her shoulders again. "Oh, by the way Fredward…" she gave a sly smile. "Nice Dimples!"

"SAM!" He pushed her over onto her side and balled up his fists in his lap; his face was completely angry.

Sam rolled on the deck laughing at his expression. "Ok, sorry dude. I had to say it, but I swear that's it."

She sat back up and pulled her hair over her shoulder again. "Ok, on to the next question." Freddie didn't move. "I said I'm sorry!" Freddie still didn't move. She picked up Freddie's hands and put them on her shoulders, but they went limp and slid back down to his lap. She turned to look at him. His face was still very angry. "Come on Fredward!" she begged. "I'll buy you a cookie."

Freddie, embarassed and disgusted, shook his head at her and stood up to walk away. Sam caught him by the wrist before he could leave. "Alright," she conceded. "I'll tell you _my_ most embarrassing story." Freddie didn't say anything, but he did turn to look at her.

"When I was six," she winced like the memory was still painful, "my mom decided to enter me into the Little Miss Seattle Sweetheart Pageant at the mall. You know, big hair, make-up…all of it." Sam turned up her nose, disgusted. "My mom had to bribe me with a giant ice cream cone to put on the stupid frilly pink dress." Freddie's angry face was starting to crack. "I ate the ice cream just before I went on for the talent portion. I did a bunch of cartwheels, flips, standing on my head, and that kind of junk…Actually, I was pretty awesome!" She looked at him proudly. "But…" her face fell again. "...Right after that, they were crowning the winner, and the ice cream…decided to make an encore appearance."

Freddie couldn't hold his anger any longer, his laughter got stronger as Sam continued with the story. "I puked all over the reigning Little Miss Seattle Sweetheart. When the emcee tried to grab me and pull me away from her, I bit him. I had ice cream puke all over me. I pulled off my dress and threw it at the bratty girl next to me. That girl's mom started yelling at one of the judges. By then, everyone was screaming and now there were a few people trying to grab me. I jumped off the stage and ran through the mall in my underpants. It took my mom, two judges and three security guards a half an hour to catch me…I obviously didn't win."

Freddie was laughing so hard that he was bent over wiping his eyes. "Ok," she said over his laughter. "You satisfied? Can we get back to business then, dimples?"

"Sure thing _Miss Seattle Sweetheart_." He sat down behind her and started massaging her shoulders again, letting his laughter die down.

"Yeah, by the way, those names don't leave this boat," she warned. "You're lucky you're so good at this, Benson, or you'd have been dead a long time ago," She said getting used to the massage again. "Mmmm. What's the next question? And why are you making them so hard, anyway?"

"When else can I make you tell the truth," he smirked.

"Well, just don't make me beat you, Dorkwad!"

"Dorkwad, huh?" he thought. "Ok Puckett, there's my next question. Why do you hate me so much?"

"Who said I hate you?" she said. "It's like the Plain White T's said: 'Hate is a strong word, but I really don't like you'."

Freddie let out a chuckle, "Yeah, but why?"

"Is that another question?"

"Nope, same question. You didn't answer the other one."

"Well…" Sam thought a minute. "You used to be super annoying. Like every time I saw you, I wanted to punch you. And, I really hate when you drool all over Carly. It just makes everyone uncomfortable." Freddie frowned as she continued. "I used to torture you to make you go away…and it was fun." She thought a minute. "But now…I've gotten used to you, I guess. You're not quite so bad to be around," she shrugged. "Torturing you is still fun, but for a different reason. Now I like to see what you can come back at me with…and how far I can push. I have to admit, Benson. You're a lot stronger than you look." She smiled to herself. "Besides, you, me, and Carly have been through a lot…You and me have been through a lot…Well, you know."

Freddie softly smiled to himself, "Yeah, I know. So…have you kissed anyone since we…" He didn't finish the sentence, but he didn't have to.

"No," she said gently. "It just hasn't come up. You?"

"Not yet," He gave a worried smile. "I don't know that I'll be any less nervous the next time."

"I don't think we're supposed to be." She shrugged.

"I wonder…" Freddie stalled anxiously. "We never talked about when we…I mean, well did you…was I…"

"Spit it out, boy!"

Freddie took a deep breath to get his nerve. "Was I any good? At the kissing thing…I mean, did you like it? From me?"

Sam was silent for a minute, which really made Freddie nervous. "Well…I have no basis for comparison, but…it was firm, and not too slobbery, and your lips were…" Sam smiled as her thoughts trailed off, briefly. "Um, yeah…it was kind of …enjoyable…you know, for a first kiss."

Freddie raised his eyebrows, impressed with himself. "Well…would you do it again? With me, I mean?"

Sam glanced back over her shoulder. "Is that a question or a request?"

Freddie thought for a second. "Both, maybe."

Sam lowered her head. "I think you should stop now."

Freddie's fingers froze, taking in what she said. He dropped his hands in his lap, disappointment overtaking his face.

She moved over to the cushion next to him. She hugged her legs, but kept stealing glances at his hurt face. "Do you want to go back?"

He gave her a half smile; the disappointment was still under the surface. "What, and miss out on all this?" He pointed up to the night sky above.

Sam looked up. "I know," she said softly. "There are so many stars out here."

Freddie quickly took up his know-it-all persona. "Actually, it's no more than in Seattle, they're just more visible out here without the city lights."

"NOOOOO!" she said sarcastically.

Falling back into their normal routine, he made a face at her. "Well at least you can see the constellations here." He pointed to a group of stars. "See there's Cassiopeia, and Andromeda…"

"No," she interrupted. "That's Perseus." She pointed to another set of stars. "_That's_ Cassiopeia, and _there's_ Andromeda." Freddie looked at her incredulously as she continued. "Then there's Taurus, Canis Minor, and my boy Urion."

"Don't you mean _O _rion?"

"Only if you're talking about his new name." She said in a superior tone.

Freddie was suddenly in the mood to argue. "You are so full of it. You have no idea what you're talking about."

"I do." She defended. "It's all in the legend, and Scorpio, Lupus, Canis Major, and Canis Minor are all part of the same legend. That's why they're all grouped together."

"They are?" Freddie says skeptically.

Sam laid back on the cushion and told Freddie the legend of Orion. Freddie was staring back and forth between the beautiful stars above him, and the excitement on Sam's face as she told the story. She was obviously amused with the story and the way she was telling it was making him laugh.

"You don't study anything, ever. How do you know all this?" he asked, sort of impressed with her knowledge.

"Well, first of all it's a cool story, but a long time ago we had a neighbor that was once the captain of a ship. He used to tell me all sorts of stories and legends." She chuckled at the memory. "He had this long beard and he lost an eye in some accident, so he wore an eye patch. I used to think he was a pirate. He was so awesome. I mean, who wouldn't want to live next door to a pirate, right?" Sam let out a big yawn as she was starting to feel the weight of the day catch up to her.

Freddie chuckled still watching the sky, "Sam, you know some of the weirdest people I've ever heard of. Actually, you're related to some of the weirdest people I've ever heard of."

After several minutes of silent stargazing, something small and bright flashed across the sky. "Whoa," he said excited. "A shooting star! Did you make a wi…" He looked down to see that she was asleep. He admired how peaceful she looked. He pulled aside a stray hair that was blowing across her face, and saw movement just out of the corner of his eye. He looked up to see Spencer coming toward the boat.

"Hey guys," Spencer said, hopping aboard. "I thought I'd bring some blankets and check on you two, I saw you arguing earlier…like that's anything new." Freddie pressed his finger to his lips and pointed to Sam. "Oh, asleep already, huh?" Spencer lowered his voice.

"Yeah," Freddie said taking the blankets. "I don't think she's slept much since we left Seattle."

"Granddad and I were just trying to figure out sleeping arrangements." Spencer spread a blanket over Sam then sat on the bench. "Where did she sleep last night?"

"She said she spent the night in the SUV," Freddie fibbed a little, "but it got really cold."

Spencer frowned, "Oh ugh, that couldn't have been comfortable."

Freddie and Spencer watched as Sam snuggled into her blanket. "Hey Spencer, I have an idea, if you don't mind.'

"Ok, Shoot"

Freddie looked up at the sky. "It's a beautiful night, and Sam's already asleep," he nodded at her. "Do you care if we stay out here?"

"Won't you be cold?" Spencer asked concerned.

"Well, these blankets are actually pretty warm," Freddie reasoned. "If it gets too bad we can always go back inside the cabin. I'll let her take my bed, and I'll sleep in the chair in the front room."

"I don't know," Spencer said, still skeptical. "You two alone, together? It's not quite...proper, is it?"

"And exactly what about Sam is proper, Spencer" Freddie rolled his eyes. "Besides, we tolerate each other at best most of the time." Freddie frowned slightly at Sam. "I don't think you have to worry about anything…_improper_."

"Except for maybe having to explain to your mom how you drowned in your sleep," Spencer smiled.

"Yeah, well that's always a possibility," Freddie laughed. "But knowing Sam, that could happen _indoors_, too"

Spencer looked down at Sam sleeping and sat thinking for a moment.

"We could come in if you want us to," Freddie conceded. "But _you_ have to wake her up."

"Hmm, No…" Spencer said hastily. "I think I may want children someday. I'm going to need all my parts intact," he winced. "Maybe you're right. You guys can stay out here." Spencer slapped his knees as he got up from the bench. "Well, you have blankets, and there's a flashlight up near the wheel if you need it. Anything else?"

Freddie smiled, "Nah, just leave the door unlocked in case."

"Will do!" Spencer reached down and gave the top of Sam's head an affectionate little squeeze, the way he used to do to Carly when she was little. He hopped back over to the dock. After a quick "Night Freddie," he jogged back up to the cabin.

Freddie watched Spencer go then snuggled down into his blankets. He took one more glance at Sam then muttered to himself, "You don't have to worry, Spencer. Apparently I'm not good enough for her anyway."

"I never said that."

Freddie turned sharply to Sam. "I thought you were asleep."

"I was," she yawned. "I woke up when Spencer put the blanket on me."

"Oh…Well, how come you didn't say anything?"

"Because I thought he'd make us go in." She looked up at the sky. "You're right. It's nice out here under the stars."

Freddie looked up too. They could feel the uncomfortable silence building between them again.

"Freddie," she turned to look at him. "I wasn't trying to hurt you when I told you to stop. Just...know that, Ok?"

Freddie didn't say anything, so Sam looked back at the stars feeling the thickness of the silence.

When he finally spoke, his voice sounded cold, and he still wouldn't look at her. "Why did you then?"

"It's not that I don't _want_ to, it's that… I can't. I'd have too much to lose." She said so softly he almost didn't hear her.

Freddie turned to look at her. "What do you mean?"

Sam reached up to squeeze her eyes. "Ugh, I hate all this mushy stuff!" She looked at him and spoke slowly, trying to choose her words carefully. "Boyfriends leave, and relationships tend to suck. I mean, look at Jonah trying to cheat, or Valerie using you, or my dad leaving, or…" She stopped not wanting to bring up his lack of a father. "Whatever…boyfriends are temporary."

She found she couldn't look at him when she talked about her feelings. "I don't have very many people in my life that I can count on…not even my mom, most of the time." She let out a deep breath. "But somewhere along the way, no matter how annoying you got, you…"

"I what, Sam?"

She finally looked at him. "You became one of those people that I count on."

Freddie reached over and held on to her hand lightly.

"I can't afford to put you in a place that I might lose you. I need you around too much." She looked away and quickly wiped her eyes.

"Wow, that's…really unexpected, Sam. I guess I understand. Just so you know…" He squeezed her hand tighter. "I don't plan on going anywhere." He looked away and his tone became a bit lighter. "But…"

"But what?" She looked at him curiously.

Freddie smiled cheekily, "But I only asked if you'd kiss me again, not if you'd be my girlfriend." Freddie laughed, "Because it's clear that I am way too much of a guy for you to..."

"JERK!" Sam sat up and pushed him. They both started laughing and Sam tried to cover his mouth while he continued to tease her and wrestle her hands away. "No, you just need to keep your mouth shut because you know that I'm better than anyone you'll…"

They continued with their playful argument until they collapsed next to each other laughing. When their laughter finally calmed down, Freddie looked over at her.

"You know I think what you did to get here was stupid, Puckett...But I'm glad you came."

"Me too, Benson." She leaned her head against his shoulders and they both fell asleep gazing up at their own starry storybook.

* * *

I completely wish I were Sam in this chapter...for selfish reasons of course. I could use a Freddie with nice strong hands about now. Sorry, not so much of a shiny happy chapter on this one. Hope you liked it anyway, although I may need to go and hide... Oh alright! Go ahead, let me have it!

2 more chapters, folks. Whatever will happen? Oh yeah, and let me know if you figured out the disclaimer.


	9. Waking Up

**Well hello there little fanfic readers! Back so soon? What, not enough Seddie for you? Yeah, me neither. Speaking of me being jealous of Sam (Yeah, I did in the author's notes of the last chapter, remember?)...Yesterday was my volunteer day, and I was out in the hot sun tearing down a fence at a nursery. Man, could I use a Freddie with strong hands today! (And a big glass of iced tea, but that has nothing to do with the story. Wait, neither does this...so why are you wasting their time, Luna? Sheesh!)**

**Hee, Monkey D. Conan: I like your insight, we'll go with your explanation, it makes me sound smart!** :D** You guys didn't want to injure me for that last ending. Woot Woot! In Fact most of you really liked it, and some of you were just confused about the disclaimer...**

**So Oops, my secret's out! I suck at Spanish! Can't win em' all, i guess, but I tried. Thanks Obamarocks and Absolutely M for trying to help. Since _that_ was a disaster, we're going to try something a little bit different this time...you ready?**

**This is the first ever (that I know of) Musical Disclaimer, set to the tune of the iCarly theme song! (EVERYBODY SING ALONG, NOW! ****In 5..4..3..2...**) 

**_I know you see, that I don't own iCar-arly, ain't that so wonderful. (Dum, Dum, Dum) _**

**_Its made by Dan from Nick o lo de-a-an, aren't they so wonderful! _**

**_And so's this song...but, I still want to sing along._**

**_So wake up my little Fanfic nation, it's your time to read. _**

**_No reviews unless you make them._**

**_And take time to Squee at every sight of Seddie situations. _**

**_Creddie's not meant to be, so shake off the stress and just sit down and read. (all that Drake Bell echoey stuff I dont feel like typing.)_**

**_just leave it all to me._**

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Sam was lying curled in a ball, her favorite position. She felt a cool breeze ruffle through her hair and pulled the blanket tighter to her chest. She turned her head to block out the bright light that was coming from above, when she felt a burst of warm air against her forehead. She slowly began to open her eyes finding herself face to face with Freddie. He was lying on his side facing her with his arms crossed over his chest. His face looked completely serene with just the tiniest smile at the corner of his mouth.

Sam picked up her head to see that they were still on the boat. She arched her back to get a good cat stretch to her achy bones. It was only then that she realized she couldn't feel her left arm. She tried to move it and finally realized why she couldn't. It was under Freddie. How it ended up there, she doesn't remember. She rubbed her face in her blanket and let out one more yawn before trying to wake him. _Whoa, I definitely need a shower!_

She tried nudging Freddie gently with her arm. His smile disappeared, but he didn't move. She tried a little harder but he just groaned and snuggled himself tighter. She finally yelled, "Fredward!" His eyes flew open and landed on hers with confusion.

"Sam?" He looked around the boat. "Morning already?"

"Afraid so, Sunshine!" she smiled.

He dropped back down to his sleeping position and didn't move. He didn't want to leave his warm spot and, in his tired mind, the view wasn't so bad either. They each stayed curled in their warm little balls, silently staring at one another and trying to wake up.

A few minutes later, Sam finally broke the silence. "Come on we need to get up." Freddie frowned, then held his breath as she suddenly drew herself closer to him. She leaned up and with a soft whisper she spoke into his ear, "Dude, we stink!'

She lifted herself up to go, but was brought back down next to him with a heavy thud. He was still lying on her arm. She turned over to look at him again. He laughed softly, but still wouldn't budge.

They could feel the crisp morning air around them. The gulls were singing in the sky and the boat rocked gently with the waves. They lay still, looking at each other in the peace of the moment. He was amused by the way her eyelashes batted twice whenever she took a deep breath. She was fascinated by the fact that his left eye is just the tiniest of shades lighter than his right.

She glanced down at his lips. They looked so soft. She brushed them once gently with her finger. A sly smile slowly crept up on her face. "Yes." She said softly.

It almost made him jump when she finally spoke again. "Yes, what?"

She leaned over him again. He was waiting for her to whisper something, but her lips weren't forming words; they were coming to meet his. She pushed him over onto his back and tenderly kissed him. He willingly joined in and melted in the moment with her. He put his hand on her waist and she laughed into his lips as he hit a ticklish spot. He took note to remember that for the next time she felt the need to torture him. She pulled away and smiled down at him.

"Your question from last night; I changed my answer."

He smiled warmly back at her. She reached up to stroke his hair and then rested her hand on the life vest he was using as a pillow. Sam's warm smile quickly changed to a smirk.

"But that still doesn't mean I'm going to be nice to you." She said teasingly.

She swiftly yanked the life vest out from under his head and smashed it into his face. By forcing him onto his back, she had freed her trapped arm and now she was unfettered. She quickly jumped up and threw her blankets on top of him. She hopped over the boat's edge on to the dock while Freddie struggled to free himself from the tangle of blankets. As soon as he was free he set off in pursuit.

They laughed as he chased her all the way back to the cabin. She flung open the door to find Spencer standing in the kitchen drinking a cup of coffee. Sam hid behind Spencer while Freddie tried to grab at her.

"Guys!" Spencer yelled above them. "It's 6:30 in the morning. Try not to wake up the whole village."

"She shoved a stinky life preserver in my face," Freddie yelled, pointing at Sam.

"Yeah, well. Your breath reeks" She crossed her arms and stuck out her tongue like a child.

"Hey," Mr. Shay came from the room fully dressed. "What's going on here? Are you two at it again?"

Spencer stepped from between them and went to the chair. "Morning as usual."

"Humph." Mr. Shay grumbled. "Well, we don't have time for it this morning. Have you two packed? We're going to get an early start home."

Sam grabbed a shopping bag from the kitchen and walked over to her pile of clothes. She picked them up, now stiff from the salt water, and shoved them into the bag. "Done!"

Freddie shook his head at her. "I can be packed in about 10 minutes," he said as he headed toward his room.

As Freddie passed, Spencer got a good smell of him. "Whoa, Freddo! You smell a little ripe there. And Sam, when was the last time you took a shower?"

Sam fidgeted a bit, "Uh, the night before we left. But I don't have any clothes to change in to." She pulled her shirt out of the bag to show him. It was so stiff it looked like some failed attempt at origami.

"Hang On." Freddie rushed into his room and came back a few seconds later with some clothing in his hand. He threw them at Sam and hit her in the chest. "I brought these along extra hoping to lose them, actually. They're too small, but my mom won't let me get rid of them."

Sam held up the clothing to see a pair of immaculately clean Ridgeway gym shorts and a Penny-T with the words Pineapple Posse across the front. They were a little big for her, but they looked comfortable and actually matched. "Wow. Thanks, Benson. Mind if I take the first shower while you pack?"

"Nah, go ahead. You need it more than I do," he grinned. She gave him a quick smirk then headed for the bathroom. "Oh wait," he stopped her. He headed to his room and came back with something in his hand.

"You might want these." He handed her a brand new wrapped toothbrush and a tube of toothpaste.

"You're giving me your brand new toothbrush?" she asked unbelieving.

"Actually, I'm giving you my extra toothbrush. My mom always makes me pack two in case one of them is stolen by a pack of wild monkeys or something," he laughed.

She shrugged and headed off to the bathroom. "Cool, thanks."

An hour later Freddie finally emerged from his turn in the shower. He dragged his suitcase out with the rest of the luggage.

"See, don't you feel better now that you're all clean" Spencer asked jovially.

"I might have, if there were any hot water left," Freddie grumbled.

"Hey," Sam defended. "You were the one that said I needed it more than you."

"Children!" Yelled Mr. Shay. They stopped arguing and looked at him. "We're on our way home. We've had a good trip. Don't ruin it now, or I'm strapping both of you to the roof."

They were supposed to meet up with Carly and the Grandmother for breakfat along the way. They were on a short time table so they loaded the SUV and started to get in.

"Sam, I supposed Freddie will be nice enough to share the back seat with you." Mr. Shay suggested.

"I don't know. I think her old seat is still available. I guess it depends on if she's going to be nice or not," he smirked at her.

"Well, if you can't handle riding with me, I'll be glad to shove _you_ in there, Dimp…Nub weed."

"And the fun begins, again!" Spencer said exasperated as he led Sam to the opposite passenger door.

"Grizzlies, Load 'em up and Move 'em out!" Mr. Shay shouted.

They all made themselves comfortable as they made their way home. Freddie didn't even grumble when Sam threw her feet up into his lap. He just made her take her shoes off first. Sam sat quietly enjoying the view she missed on the way there. The rocking of the SUV was starting to lull her to sleep. Freddie had absent mindedly started gently stroking her legs on his lap; this new familiarity between them was kind of nice.

Spencer finally broke the silence. "I'm glad we got to do this, Granddad. I'm sure Freddie really appreciated the male bonding thing, right Freddo?"

"Well, almost all male, anyway," he looked at Sam, "but yeah, it was definitely cool." He gave her a quick smile before turning his attention to Mr. Shay. "Thanks for inviting me, Sir."

"Your Welcome, Son. The weekend was perfect." Mr. Shay agreed. "Not too long, not too short, it was just right. And having Sam here wasn't that bad either, even if she was only an honorary Grizzly."

In her tired state, Sam started to giggle in the back seat. Slowly each of the men started looking at her and with each one's attention the giggles grew stronger. The sound was infectious and before long they were all laughing, but they didn't know why.

"What's so funny?" Spencer finally asked over his shoulder.

"It's dumb, but I was just thinking. If you three are bears, then that must make me Goldilocks." She giggled. She pointed at Mr. Shay. "There's Papa Bear;" she tapped Spencer on the shoulder, "Mama Bear;" she nudged Freddie with her foot, "and little bitty baby bear."

The three men groaned but it didn't stop their laughter. Freddie thought out loud. "Hmm, Let's see. Goldilocks snuck into the bears' cabin, ate all the food, used all their stuff and then took a nap. Yeah, that sounds about right. Anyway, It certainly has been an adventure. " Sam and Freddie made themselves comfy in the back seat, and slept until time to meet up with Carly. Even if it weren't out of a book, they'd definitely have a story to tell when they got home.

* * *

**What's this? Can it be? A short(ish) chapter from me? (Shows her shocked face!) What's come over me?**

**Ok, I'll admit it. That was a super cheesy ending! Hey, I like cheese! Especially the squirty kind in a can. (No, I don't. Silly!) Really, I was just trying to tie it back into the whole Goldilocks theme. **

**Speaking of cheesy, you guys boobed your heads to the disclaimer theme song, didn't you? Come on, I won't tell...**

**So does this make you happier Krissy and Lucas4everpeyton? **

**I know, I made you all wait a long time for this. Bad Author! So, was it worth it? ****One more chapter to go folks! Aww : ( **


	10. The Epiloguy thing, but Never the End

**Here we are folks, the final chapter! That's right, you may have thought it was over, but NO! We still have some unfinished Seddie business here! **

**Quick shout out to Krissy who was my 100th reviewer! THANKS KRISSY, and thanks to everyone who reviewed. You sure do know how to make a FF writer's day! **

**So some of you said you sang along with the last disclaimer, WHICH I LOVED!!!!! I don't think I can top that, so once again I go upside down!**

**¡plɹoʍ ʎsɐʇuɐɟ ǝlʇʇıl uʍo ʎɯ oʇuı ʇnd puɐ ,,ʍoɹɹoq,, oʇ ǝʞıl ı ʇɐɥʇ sɹǝʇɔɐɹɐɥɔ ʇɐǝɹƃ puɐ ʍoɥs ǝlqıpǝɹɔuı uɐ ɥɔns ƃuıʞɐɯ ɹoɟ ʎɹɹǝɾ puɐ 'uɐɥʇɐu 'ǝʇʇǝuǝɾ 'ɐpuɐɹıɯ 'ɹǝpıǝuɥɔs uɐp oʇ ʍoq ı (*qos*) ˙llıʍ ɹǝʌǝu 'ʎlɹɐɔı uʍo ʇ,uop ı** **:ɹǝɯıɐlɔsıp**

**So, Without further adieu:**

* * *

It had been three days since they returned from their adventurous weekend. Carly was in the studio waiting on Freddie and Sam so they could start rehearsals. She was uploading her photos to everyone else's, so they could decide which ones to show on iCarly. She chuckled to herself as she flipped through the photos of the fishing trip. She especially liked the one where her granddad, Spencer and Sam held up their fish, and Freddie held up Sam. Carly was grateful for the time she spent with her grandmother, but after hearing of all their adventures, she couldn't help wishing she had gone fishing. Even Freddie and Spencer were even surprised to find out all the things Sam went through to stay hidden, not to mention, how many times she nearly got caught.

Carly opened the file with her spa pictures. There were some great shots of her and her grandma in different spots at the ranch. There were a lot of pictures of people they met, including the hot guy that worked in the smoothie bar. _Wouldn't mind sucking smoothie off of those lips!_ She had uploaded a short video of her riding a horse though an obstacle course (which she happened to be proud of), and a mini segment she and her grandma recorded called "Food or Facial." The final shot, however, was by far her favorite of the whole weekend.

She smiled as she remembered when it was taken: It was after they had met back up with "The Grizzlies" (she and Sam still laugh about that) for breakfast on the way home. Carly and her granddad switched rides. He and her grandma took the road back to Yakima, and she rode back to Seattle with Spencer, Sam and Freddie. They had already gone over the details of the trip and how Sam actually ended up with the guys. They were traveling on a quiet stretch of road. She and Spencer had been talking a while before she noticed how quiet it was in the back seat. She glanced backward over her shoulder then immediately pulled out her camera.

Freddie was leaning against the door sleeping. Sam had shifted in her seat belt so that her feet were up up against her window. She had fallen asleep with her back lying against Freddie, and her head resting on his chest. He had one arm draped across her chest with his hand resting against her waist. His other hand rested lightly on her head. Blond curls twisted around his fingers, and they both had contented smiles on their faces. Carly snapped the pic, without flash of course, and made sure she locked it in her favorites to protect it from being "accidentally" deleted by any nosy blonds or tech nerds.

Carly's attention snapped back to the present when she heard the elevator ding. She minimized the gallery and waited for her visitors to arrive. She stood with her arms folded as the doors rolled open and out walked Sam and Freddie. She noticed they had been together a lot lately, and even though they still argued, insulted, and played nasty jokes on each other, it seemed to lack the usual viciousness. She thought back to the picture and tried to hide her levity. Instead, she assumed the confrontational position she had planned on giving them when they arrived. Sam immediately noticed Carly's body language and narrow glare.

"Alright, what did I do this time?"

"You broke my granddad," Carly said coolly.

Sam and Freddie looked at each other curiously then simultaneously turned back to Carly and said, "Huh?"

"You heard me," she said in mock anger. "My granddad, Charlie Shay, the man who wanted to exile me to Yakima because one of Spencer's sculptures accidentally attacked me…He just told me he's taking skydiving lessons starting next week."

"Alright, Mr. Shay!" Sam cheered, then quickly took the defensive. "And what makes you think that has anything to do with me?"

"Oh, I don't know," Carly smiled. "Maybe the fact that he mentioned the two of you four times in the ten minute conversation I had with him this afternoon." Sam and Freddie both smiled brightly. "He said he had a really good time, and asked if you two would be interested in tagging along on my next trip to Yakima."

Freddie looked surprised. "Really, what did you say?"

"I said that a town like Yakima probably wasn't ready for Hurricane Sam or the rest of us," she smiled. "He just said that the town could use some waking up and offered to set us up with the local morning show. Apparently we're a big deal there. Oh, and Sam, he thinks you'd like something called the Chimposium…yeah, I don't know what it is. He couldn't decide between that and the cheese factory."

"Chimps and Cheese? Good ol' Charlie," Sam said impressed.

Carly reached behind her and picked up a large yellow envelope. "This came here for you, it's from someone named 'The Stinger'…?" Sam lunged at the package and snatched it from Carly's hand. "It's here?!"

Freddie and Carly looked at each other curiously. "What is it," he finally asked.

"Oh, you'll see." She smiled and pulled out the letter. She read it silently except for the giggles and excited looks she gave to certain passages. "Sam," Carly said impatiently. "I've been staring at this package all afternoon. Come on already, show us what it is!" Sam pulled something square and flat out of the envelope and thrust it in front of them "Ba-ham!"

It was some sort of framed photo. Carly and Freddie eyed it closely. "What the heck," Carly muttered as Freddie's eyes suddenly went wide. "No way! Oh-My-God, NO WAY!" He snatched the photo from Sam's hand. "Careful, Jockey pants," she laughed.

"What is it?" Carly was laughing at Freddie, who was jumping up and down like a kid who just got a shiny red bike for Christmas.

"This," he kissed the photo and held it up for Carly, "is an autographed photo of the entire cast of Galaxy Wars, IN COSTUME!"

Carly looked over at Sam, perplexed, as Freddie was still freaking out. "It's a big deal?"

Sam smiled. "It's a big deal."

"Huh," Carly finally said, only slightly impressed. "How did you…"?

"Well, remember me telling you about Stella, the lady I met outside that diner on the first day?" Sam slammed her foot down on Freddie's toe to get him to stop jumping, and then took the picture from him. She quickly scanned through the faces. "That's her," she said pointing to one of the aliens.

Freddie finally limped his way over to the girls. "Oh, but get this!" Sam jumped excitedly and grabbed the letter. "Her neighbor's son, the special effects makeup artist, is working on a new zombie movie. He's invited us out to his studio in Lakewood to see his process for creating the masks; maybe even tape it for the show if he can get permission. He said he has a lot of the Galaxy Wars prototypes there if we were interested in seeing…" Sam was nearly knocked off her feet as Freddie excitedly ran and tackled her in a crushing hug.

Carly raised her eyebrows and smiled smugly at the pair. "Think that's a yes?" She noticed that it took Sam a few seconds before she finally pushed Freddie off of her…then she punched him in the gut. "Ugh, Sam," Freddie yelled as he doubled over. Sam gave him a smug smile, then walked over to Carly.

"So, Carls, whatcha been doin'?"

"Oh, I just uploaded my spa photo's while I was waiting for you guys." Carly gave a coy smile as she nodded at the laptop and excused herself from the room. "I'm going… to get some drinks, then we can start rehearsals."

Freddie hobbled over and popped the screen back up so he could log into the website. He froze as he saw a picture he didn't recognize on the screen. He was asleep in the SUV and he was actually cuddling with Sam. He sort of remembered doing it, and how it felt. Seeing it like this, though, somehow made it feel less like a dream.

Sam looked up and saw Freddie's face. She couldn't quite read his expression, so she went around to see what he was looking at. Freddie watched her in anticipation. _Would she be happy? Would she throw the laptop out the window? _For several long seconds she just stood there staring at the screen. Freddie couldn't stand it anymore. "Sam?"

She gave him a quick shy smile. She reached out to take his hand, laced her fingers in his and nodded back to the screen. "You look happy!"

He squeezed her hand lightly and looked at the picture. "I am happy," he smiled. "Do you want to know my favorite part of the trip?" he asked softly. "It was going to sleep." Sam looked up at him curiously as he turned to face her. "Because every time I woke up, I got to wake up to you."

Freddie usually walked on eggshells around Sam, but for the first time, he took the initiative. He reached up and brushed the hair from her cheek before caressing it with his palm. He leaned in to kiss her. There was no hesitation, no demands, no trickery. Her lips were open and waiting for him as he tenderly met them. He had found his new "happy place." He released her hand, reached up to her waist, and accidentally found the ticklish spot again. She laughed as she squirmed away from his touch.

"Sorry," he quickly apologized.

"I'm not!" She wrapped her arms around his neck and started kissing him again.

A few blissful moments later, Freddie reluctantly broke himself away from her. "Sam what are we doing?"

"Huh, you'd think after the third time, Benson, you'd have figured it out," she smirked.

He pulled her hands from his shoulders and held them in his own. "No Sam, what does this mean...between us?"

Sam dropped her hands and groaned loudly at the floor. "I don't know, Dor…Freddie." She ran her hands through her hair. "I told you I need you as a friend, but I can't get _this_ out of my head."

"And you don't think we can be both," he asked nervously, walking away.

"I don't know," she whined.

_Sam whining_, Freddie thought. _This must be killing her_! He leaned nervously against the iCarly car. "Sam, I promised that I would always be here for you, and I intend to keep that promise...no matter what you decide right now."

Sam stood considering his words. "Can I still call you names and beat up on you every now and then?"

Freddie smiled. "Can you ever _not_ call me names and beat up on me?"

"No," she smiled. "No, I don't think I can!"

Freddie laughed as he slowly moved closer. "Then I guess it'll be my burden to bear for getting into this mess."

"Mess!" she argued. "You're calling me a mess?"

He was now standing a few inches from her. He bent down to kiss her cheek then grinned as he said softly into her hear "Uh, huh."

Sam took a moment to clear her throat, and her mind. "Ahem. Alright, Benson." She laced her fingers with his, again. "Just one condition. If either of us wants out, for any reason, it's done. No explanations required. And we go back to where we were before. No whining, no complaining, no begging."

Freddie looked up at the ceiling as he considered the terms. "It'll be hard…but I think I can live with that."

Sam smiled at Freddie. "Well, Benson, it looks like you have yourself a new girlfriend…for now."

Freddie snaked his hand around her waist and pulled her in for another kiss. He took in the warm scent and sweet taste of _His Girlfriend_. They broke apart when they heard an excited "Yes" coming from the other side of the door. They looked up just in time to see Carly's startled face through the glass before she ran back downstairs still carrying the drinks. Sam and Freddie froze where they were for a few seconds after Carly's retreat.

"She did just yell 'Yes' didn't she?" Freddie finally asked.

"Yes, she did," Sam said slowly.

"And she's gone to tell Spencer?"

"Probably."

He looked at her, smiled his cheeky smile and raised his eyebrows, "So we have, what, two minutes?"

Sam raised her eyebrows and smiled back, "uh huh." She grabbed his collar and pulled him down to her lips again. "Might as well not waste it, Benson."

(Cue Applause and Drop Curtain)

* * *

**So 10 chapters and 31,626 words later...Oh My God it's the end! Stella still sort of brought them together, even though she wasn't there! Yeah, she rocks! **

**I have had a lot of fun with this first Multi-chap story. I have met some very cool people and had some great convos during all this, and even learned a bunch from you guys. Thanks for keeping me entertained! You guys got my writing mojo going. It's become kind of addicting, so I'll definitely post more. I even have one quick one-shot I wrote this afternoon that I'll post after this. **

**So, See ya kittens! (Big Hug) If you feel like a chat, just PM me. **

**Oh, Yeah! Still Review! YES PLEASE! I want to know what you think of the ending, and what your favorite part was, or what you hated. **

**TA **

***LUNA***


	11. You're gonna want to read this!

**So if you thought this story was finished, You...Thought............Right...sort of. In my mind this story was finished, but I have an exciting little announcement for you. (Actually, maybe it's only exciting for me.) Now, I could be a normal person, and just tell you, but what's the fun in that?! I'm going to let Carly and Sam tell you, in their own special way! So please read and Please Please Please respond appropriately.**

**Disclaimer: Do we still need this? Ok, not much has changed. It's still in the hands of someone that's not me, darn it!**

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"Sam! Freddie! Sam!" Carly's voice could be heard as she rushed up the steps outside the studio. She finally burst through the studio doors and stopped. The studio was empty, except for Sam, who was quietly sitting cross-legged on Mrs. Benson's enormous first aid kit, eating off the powdered sugar from a box of Sunshine Girls' Fudge Balls.

"What are you doing?" Carly asked, curious at the girl's calm demeanor.

"Sitting on the first aid case, enjoying Fudge Balls." She had just put the now naked treat back into the package, when all of a sudden a loud banging came from inside the case. It rocked her back and forth, but she remained sitting calmly on top.

"Um…You are aware it's moving?"

"Uh, huh." She pulled open the box and offered one to Carly.

Carly simply held up her hand in polite refusal, not to be distracted from the current situation. "Why?"

"Freddie said he couldn't believe anyone could travel inside that thing for over 3 hours," she explained, as she pulled another fudge treat from the box. "So I shoved him in…and now I'm licking his balls." She let out a grin as she popped the sweet in her mouth.

The case started moving underneath her again, and Freddie's muffled voice could be heard coming from inside of it. She uncrossed her leg then kicked loudly against the side of the case. The case immediately stopped.

Sam threw aside the box of Fudge Balls, hopped off the case, and turned her attention to Carly. "So, you came in all hot and bothered. What's up?"

"Oh yeah!" Carly's excitement returned as she remembered what she came in for. "You know that weird girl Kaylee in our English class?"

"The girl that steals pencils from everyone then makes jewelry out of the erasers?" Sam asked as she wiped the powdered sugar onto Freddie's jacket.

"No that's Hailey. Kaylee is the one that dresses like a Japanese cartoon and hums loudly when she goes to the bathroom.

"Oh, yeah!" Sam scowled. "Man, I hate that. It's so distracting when all I wanna do is go pee."

"Ugh! Tell me about it. Anyway, she's all into reading these fanfic stories and stuff and…"

"Whoa, Whoa, Whoa," Sam interrupted. "These whatta huh's?

"She called them fanfics." Carly could see the blank expression on Sam's face. "As in fiction…stories? It's where people who are fans of a particular TV Show, Movie, Book…write stories about the people that are in them.

"Ew!" Sam grimaced. "Who the chizz is gonna read something like that?

"Lot's of people, I guess." Carly shrugged. "There are tons of sites dedicated to it. Some even have their own awards. Look!"

Sam followed Carly over to the tech cart and watched as she started typing the web address _**dotmoon . net**_, into the laptop. The screen lit up with a large moon surrounded by stars, and a fancy script over the front.

Sam started navigating around the screen and finding all sorts of message boards, and artwork, and stories about stuff even she watched. "Crazy. There's all sorts of junk in there."

"Uh, huh." Carly smiled at her friend's interest so far…but she had more. "…Including this!"

Carly clicked on the top left star and followed the path to the category "iCarly."

"Hey, That's Us!" Sam pointed at the screen excitedly.

"I know! There's a few writers here that wrote stuff about us, " Carly giggled. "Adnama19, Musicfreak921, Fictions of Legends, Panda Hallows," she read through the authors list. "Oh! And remember that fishing trip you went on with Spencer, Freddie and Granddad?"

Sam smiled and glanced back over her shoulder at Freddie, still trapped in the case. "Vaguely."

"I read this one earlier written by this girl, Luna Moody." Carly pulled up the story called "iStow Away," then scooted over so Sam could read it better.

Sam mouthed the words as she read. _"…__Sam sat at the bar of the empty apartment. She twirled twice on the stool then proceeded to kick the gigantic first aid kit that was so carelessly left within her reach. After a few strikes at it she really began looking at it. _That is pretty big…_ She jumped off the stool and opened the case. Mrs. Benson kept everything organized and labeled into neat little built-in chambers. Sam began poking around between the chambers and the sides of the case. Sure enough the whole kit could easily slide out of the case…_"

"Hey! That's…" She looked up with shock and confusion. "but…how did they know about that?"

"I'm not sure, exactly."

"She even has my thoughts in there!" Sam shouted in amazement at the screen.

"I know!" Carly shouted back, understanding the excitement. "She even knew about me wanting to lick smoothie off the cute fruit bar guy's lips!"

"What?" Sam finally looked up at Carly.

"Oh nothing," Carly giggled, remembering the lips in question. "Anyway…There's all sorts of interesting things about that trip in there." She said a little teasingly to Sam. "…Like Spencer's little explosion, some unexpected spooning…and when exactly were you going to tell me you saw Freddie's naked butt?

The case started to move more vigorously again. Freddie was clearly agitated and his muffled calls were getting louder.

"Are you going to let him out?" Carly asked, pointing at the case.

"Yeah, Yeah. In a minute." Sam waved her off, and her eyes went back to the screen. "So, who is this person? I mean, were they following us, or something? And how would they know about all the private stuff?"

Carly came back and stared at the screen. The puzzle pieces were turning in her head. "Maybe it didn't happen."

Sam looked at her like she'd just grown a third eyeball. "What do you mean it didn't happen? Of course it happened!"

Carly smiled. "Well, No. It's fiction. It happened to the fictional Sam and Freddie. That's what these fanfic writers do. They write stuff they want to see the characters doing."

"So wait." Sam pointed at her, still in a state of confusion. "You're saying she didn't write what we did. We did what she wrote?"

"No…Yeah…Sort of?" Carly frowned and scratched her head. "Wait, now I'm confused."

They silently paced around the room for several minutes, trying to figure out if it was all in their heads.

"Carly?" Sam finally asked quietly. "Are you real?

"Of course I am!"

"And I'm real, right?"

"Yep."

"But the trip wasn't real?"

"Exactly. It was fiction."

"Wow!" Sam said in shock, finally coming to some understanding. "That was one amazing story!"

"Wasn't it?" Carly chuckled. "Maybe you ought to vote for it."

"I can do that?" Sam made her way back over to the laptop.

"Yeah," Carly smiled as she followed her over. "And that author's got another story on there too. You won"t believe what you do in that one!

Sam goes to the keyboard and types in her information to vote and clicks send.

"That's is just coo coo." Sam was still shaking her head in disbelief. "OH!" She jumped up excitedly. "We gotta go tell Spencer! This is so weird, I think his head might just explode!"

"Oh Yeah!" Carly cheered. "I haven't seen a good Spencer mind-blowing in a long time. Let's go!"

The girls rushed out of the studio slamming the door behind them. The only sounds in the studio was the mumbles and rocking from the gigantic first aid kit, and the dorky tech producer that had been forgotten inside of it.

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**So I realize that this is a little different than the rest of the chapter...and I think I confused myself by it. The purpose of this, however, I hope is clear. YES FOLKS! THIS STORY HAS BEEN NOMINATED AS A BEST OF FANDOM STORY AT www . DOTMOON . Net(you have to remove the spaces). If you liked it, (which I really hoped you did) PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE go over and vote for it! Go quick though. Voting ends on April 30th. I even added a link to the website on my profile page. (hope it works).**

**Would it help if I told you the only thing I've ever won was tickets to a hockey game (which the car broke down on the way to) and a pair of fuzzy slippers from an e-bay auction. I always appreciate reviews. (More than I can ever tell you) but this time I actually need you to GO VOTE. It doesn't take long, and it's virtually painless. (and if you feel so inclined, my other story _iCarly's Own MLP_ was nominated too. And if you haven't read it...YOU HAVE TO! IT's REQUIRED. J/K, but it's my personal favorite.)**

**Thanks in advance. You guys always keep me pumped. Now be like Sam....Go Vote!**


	12. The One that Got Away

Hello Happy Readers. So remember the last chapter where I mentioned some sort of Awards Dealy thing that this story was up for. I thought that after 4 months, maybe it was time to tell you the results. This one didn't win. It did however come in 3rd place and iCarly's Own MLP came in 2nd. (That one's mine too. ). The Big winner for the iCarly category was Stairwells and Steering Wheels by Vix23. It's full of lots of great Puckett Pranks. Anyways thanks for reading. Thanks for voting. And Thanks for reviewing. I'm also going to take the chance to say thanks to those who favorited, but didn't review. I'd do it personally, but you're too anonymous...or lazy, LOL. Anyway, bye for now, and Happy Reading.

La La LUNA!


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